Sun and Moon
by SummerRain626
Summary: Sequel to Abby. Abigail Grimes has been through so much already but her story is far from over! AND...there's a romance with a certain redneck, hunter! ;)
1. At Least I'm Known For Something

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything except Abby!**

* * *

I was looking over the list that Daryl left me here at the Sanctuary. I come here pretty often because I have gotten to know the place and the people, with the exception of some of the people that used to be workers. I was left in charge while he and the others were out on a run. My dad asked me to come along as well, but I chose to stay here and look after things. They were not doing too well. This place used to be a factory, not good for farming. They were running out of things left and right and having to get food and stuff from other groups. Something Maggie wasn't too thrilled about. She's still pretty mad over my dad keeping Negan alive, so is Daryl. My dad says they will come around eventually, but I doubt it. It's already been a year and a half since everything went down. How much longer do they need? Things have been okay, though, for the most part. Everyone has come together to get things back to the way that they should have been. Alexandria, Hilltop, Kingdom, Oceanside and Sanctuary are all working together. Along with Georgie's group. Back home at Alexandria is really nice. We had to move out of our house, though, and into another one. Nothing wrong with that. It's nice to have a change once in a while. So, things were going pretty well. The only thing that wasn't was my depression.

It had gotten worse over time. We hardly ever see each other anymore. I'm around my dad, Michonne and Judith everyday, which is great but…I really miss Carol, Maggie and especially Daryl. Things are so different. People are different, especially Maggie and Daryl. It really depresses me. I have been going out a lot on runs, I'm trying to avoid everyone. I know that doesn't make sense considering what I just said, but it just hurts seeing people because it makes me think of how things used to be and I miss that. I also have been drinking a lot. Only at night, though, so it doesn't affect anything or anyone. I keep the bottles hidden in my closet. I can't tell anyone about this, especially my dad. He's been happy lately and I don't want to ruin that.

My other thing is that I, of course, miss my little brother. I know it's been a while but he's been with me my whole life, it's going to take more than a couple years to just get over losing him.

My last and final thing that's causing my depression is the fact that I am lonely. I'm twenty-one years old now and I still haven't been with anyone. I want to be in a relationship so bad. So many of the others have gotten together. Why haven't I found someone yet? It hurts to even see that, especially my dad and Michonne because I'm around them so much. I mean…I'm happy for them, don't get me wrong. It's just…I want that so bad but I feel like it's never going to happen for me.

"Abby." I heard someone say bringing me back to reality.

"Yeah?" I turned to Laura. She had a concerned look on her face. "What is it?"

She hesitated. "…we're really low on crops. Actually, we're really low on everything."

I nodded. "Yeah, I know."

"Can you talk to your dad? Or Maggie? We've tried to tell Daryl but he seems to just shrug it off."

I sighed. "I'll try. But I'm not making any promises." She nodded. I looked around her at the dead walkers piled on the ground and sighed again. "What is this? I thought I told someone to take care of this?"

"It was Justin's turn." Laura stated.

I suddenly became angry and stomped inside. I looked around and spotted Justin sitting at a little desk reading a book. I huffed angrily and made my way over to him. "Justin." I said. He didn't look up. "Did you take those bodies out and burn them like I asked you?"

"Yeah. Some." Was all he replied.

"Really? Because I was just out there and looks like they weren't touched." I crossed my arms in front of me.

He finally closed his book and looked at me. "Well, why the fuck would you ask if you already knew the answer?"

I was biting my tongue. "Just get back out there and do your job."

"You think I'm gonna take orders from you?" He stood up. "Who the hell are you? Where's Daryl?"

"Daryl is on a run and he left _me _in charge, so you better do as I say." I stood my ground even though he was probably over a foot taller than me.

"You think that makes a diff—

"Leave 'er alone." A voice said. I turned, it was Zane.

"Stay outta this, Zane." Justin said.

"Don't you know who she is?" Zane said. "That's Abigail Grimes. Her dad ended the war."

"Yeah? So what?"

"So, listen to the woman and do your job. You remember what Rick said. Anyone who can't live with that will pay. And you will pay."

Justin let out a small laugh. Then, he pointed at me. "Wait a minute, I remember you. You were here! You killed, what's her name? Rachel! Yeah, you stabbed her to death." He laughed. "That's what I'm going to start calling you, Stab-a-gal." He laughed some more. I gritted my teeth in anger.

"Justin, leave 'er alone and get back to work." Zane said again. "It's not funny. The girl must have deserved it."

"Yeah, I bet." Justin said but then he went outside to start taking care of the bodies.

"Thank you." I said to Zane.

"No. Thank you." He said then walked away.

I half smiled at the ground. I was feeling a little good inside. Then, I realized that some of the others had stopped to watch what was going on. I became serious again. "Everyone get back to work." To my surprise, they listened. I had to admit, it felt pretty cool being in charge for once. They're probably only listening to me because of Rick Grimes being my father. I laughed it off. Well, at least I'm known for something.

"Hey, everything okay?" Arat asked me.

"Yeah." I breathed. "It's all good." She was giving me a look like she didn't believe me. I sighed again. "It's always a damn guy. I never have any problems with the women but there's alway some asshole dude that has push his chest out."

She laughed. "It's just the way it is."

"Yeah, I know. Sometimes, I think we'd be better off without them."

"You're tellin' me." She rolled her eyes and then we both laughed.

All of a sudden, I heard a commotion between a small group of people. "What's this now?" I said out loud. I began making my way over.

"I've been looking for her everywhere." I heard a woman say as I got closer. She seemed upset.

"What's going on?" I asked.

They stopped and looked at me for a moment. There was three women and one man. "I can't find my daughter." The woman from earlier said.

"Your daughter?" I questioned. "What do you mean? When was the last time you saw her?"

"This morning." The woman stated. "I sent her out to help with the crops and I haven't seen her since."

I looked around for a clock. It was just passed two. "Don't worry. We'll find her." I put my hand on her shoulder. "What's she look like and what's her name?"

"Her name's Brittany. She has long, dark, blonde hair and she's about your height maybe a little shorter. She's fifteen."

"Okay." I nodded. "Arat."

"I'm on it." Arat said. She and laura took off to look for Brittany. I had other things to tend to.

* * *

As I was making my rounds, I stopped in the kitchen to see how stocked we were. That's usually where we have been keeping all the food, crops and everything. I looked around, it seemed all right. I mean…not grade A stuff but it was something. But…there was less of it than last time. Out of all the communities, The Hilltop was definitely doing the best. It had the perfect land for farming. Plus, Maggie grew up on a farm so she knew a thing or two. Speaking of Maggie, she really stepped up as the leader of Hilltop. They had an election not long ago, it was against Maggie and Gregory and the people chose Maggie. She makes a way better leader than him. So, with her skills, the land and the helping hands, they were thriving. The Sanctuary, on the other hand, was doing the worst. It seems like we get less and less every time.

I suddenly spotted a jar of pickles. It had been a long time since I had a good pickle. I guiltily took one and bit it. I almost drooled. Man, that shit was good. I hurriedly finished my pickle and got back to work.

After finishing my rounds, I realized that I had been on my feet all day and never got a chance to sit down. No wonder why Daryl doesn't like leading these people. It's too much work. I giggled. I need a bathroom break.

I liked using the bathrooms on the far West side of the building because hardly anyone went over there. As I was in my stall, I thought I heard a noise in one of the other stalls, but I waited and didn't hear it again so I just shrugged it off.

After I was done with my business, I heard another noise. _Okay, that's really weird. _I started looking in all the stalls going down the line. The handicapped stall was the last one, it was locked when I checked it. I suddenly heard a sniffle. "Is someone in here?" I asked.

"Yeah." A girl said.

"Oh my bad. Sorry." I was about to leave when I had a thought and stopped dead in my tracks. "Wait, is your name Brittany?"

"Yes." She said quietly.

I sighed in relief. "Well, there's people looking for you." She didn't say anything. "You wanna open the door?" I heard some noises on the other side and she eventually opened the door. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah." She shrugged. She seemed unsure, though. That's not a question you should be unsure about. I wasn't convinced. Maybe I can get it out of her while walking back.

"Come on, come with me." I put my hand on her back and we walked out of the bathroom together.

"Why were you hiding in there?" I asked her once we were down the hall.

She didn't answer right away. "…I didn't want to help with the crops."

"Okay. Well…why?" I let out a small laugh.

She was even more hesitant than before. "…there was this guy in my group…he…"

I stopped dead in my tracks. "What? What did he do to you?" I looked at her in the eyes. She had her head down. "Brittany, please! If someone did something wrong, they need to be punished for it. Now, what did he do?"

"He…he tried to…rape me." Her lip quivered.

I nodded. "It's okay." I hugged her. "It's okay. He'll be taken care of." I let her go. "Now, I just need you to tell me his name."

She looked up at me with tears in her eyes.

* * *

I rushed Brittany back to her family. Her dad ran over to her as soon as we walked into the room. I walked right passed them. "Are you okay?" Her mom asked her.

"She's fine." I said walking passed her as well.

"You found her?" Arat said.

"Yeah. Where's Zane?" I said quickly. I spotted him before she could answer me. I walked right over to him. He was talking to a few guys and they were laughing about something. "Get outside." I said to Zane.

"What? What's going on?"

"I said, get the fuck outside!" I grabbed his arm and pulled as hard as I could forcing him to stand up.

"Okay okay." His eyes were wide. I followed behind him as we went outside. I closed the door behind us. "Abby, what's going on?"

"You know a little girl named Brittany? Because she just told me something that I hope isn't true."

His face fell, I could tell he knew exactly what I was talking about, which made me all the more angry. "Look, it was a long time ago, okay? I know it was wrong, but I'm different now. I've changed. I promise."

"You've changed?" I said slowly. "You're different?" I almost laughed but there's nothing funny about this situation. "That does not change the fact that you did what you did. If I let you go, how do I know you just won't do it again?"

He hesitated. "…I-I won't."

I put my hands down at my sides and looked up at the sky then back down at him. "You disgust me." I shook my head. "The fact that you hesitated just now, the fact that you had to think about it…you're a disgusting worthless piece of trash."

He just stared at me. I raised my gun and his eyes widened. "No, please." I shot him in the head before he said anything else. Some of the others came running outside because they obviously heard the gunshot.

"Abby, what's going on?" Laura asked.

"Someone get to burying this." I said and started to walk back inside. Someone stopped me, though, by grabbing my arm. I pulled it off them.

"Whoa, wait!" Jim said. "You don't just kill one of us and not give an explanation for it."

I got close to his face. "He's a rapist." I said. "He was a rapist!" I said louder so everyone else could hear. "Tried to rape a little girl." No one said anything after that. "Listen, I'm glad all of you are alive. I wanted you to be. I told everyone. I'm glad my dad and the rest of my people didn't kill you after you surrendered…but people like him don't deserve this. He made me look bad. No one else better make me look bad." Everyone was silent. "Someone bury him." I walked back inside.

* * *

I stayed in the same place until Daryl got back. My dad and Michonne came here as well.

"Rick Grimes is here!" I heard Mel say.

"That's the man that ended the war." I heard another voice say. Part of me wanted to laugh. I saw them walking in. "Is Negan suffering? I hope he damn well is." Potter said.

"Hello." Eugene greeted them. He started talking to Daryl. "All was well in your absence, other than a certain cabal of Saviors slingin' me some serious stink-eye, but I've compiled a list of items that need your semi-immediate attention."

"Not now, man." It looked like Daryl was making his way over to me.

"I checked out the supplies." Laura said to him. "It's a pretty good haul. You should let everybody know."

"I ain't gettin' up on a stage and givin' a damn speech like him." Daryl said roughly. Laura gave him a questioning look. "It's bad timin'. We just lost someone out there."

My eyes widened a little. Everyone seemed to go about their business. "Who?" I said to Daryl.

"It was Ken."

I looked down. He was from Hilltop, and a little younger than me. "I'm sorry he's gone."

Daryl nodded. "Everythang go alright here?"

I looked back up and swallowed hard. _How do I say this? _"Actually, not really."

"Daryl." Michonne cut me off and called Daryl over. I followed. "Does this happen often?" Someone wrote, _We're Still Negan. Saviors Save Us, _on the wall. _When did that happen?_

"More and more since the crops been dyin'." Daryl said.

"That must have just happened because I didn't see that before." I said. Daryl glanced at me.

"Eugene, Jerry! You know who did that?"

"Don't know, man." Jerry replied.

"That would be a negative." Said Eugene.

"Justin. Clean that up." Daryl told him.

"How?" Justin said smartly.

"What do you mean, "how"? Paint over it."

"We just used up all the paint."

"Figure it out."

Justin got up and walked away. I could tell he was annoyed.

"You see our crops, Rick?" Laura said.

"I did." My dad replied.

"The spring storms will be here in a few weeks, help us out, but we need a boost in the meantime."

"And you'll have it." My dad said. "We came back with farming tools, heirloom seeds. We're looking to the past to help us with the present. We're all gonna pitch in and make sure that Sanctuary has what it needs so you all can get back on your feet."

"Bless you, Rick Grimes." Potter said and held his hand out. He and my dad shook hands. "Thank you." That made me smile. People broke out in applause.

"Abby, found a missing girl today." Laura said to my dad and the others. "And took care of a rapist."

"A rapist? Who?" Daryl was the first to ask. He seemed alarmed.

"It was Zane." I stated.

"Zane? Are you sure?"

"Yeah." I looked around at everyone looking at me. "Look, I'm just as surprised as you are. But he did. Brittany told me what he did."

"Brittany?" My dad questioned.

"The missing girl. That's why she was hiding." I looked at Daryl. "I'm sorry. I should have waited until you got back, but—

"Don't apologize. Ya did the right thang." Daryl put his hand on my shoulder for a second.

"Yeah, that's right." Justin said walking by. "Stab-a-gal strikes again."

"What was that about?" My dad asked me.

I shook my head. "It's nothing."

He sighed. "Are you alright, though?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I nodded. The truth was, I really needed a drink. "So, when are we heading home?"

"Well, I figured we'd spend the night here." My dad said. "Then, go to Hilltop in the morning."

"Sure." I nodded. "I'm gonna get to bed then. I haven't sat down all day." I let out a small laugh.

"Alright, goodnight then." My dad said. I gave him a kiss then I headed off to my room here while he went to talk with Daryl.

I realized I forgot something so I went back out there. I could hear my dad and Daryl out on the balcony and I caught the end of their conversation.

"Well, it's on us to figure out how to make it work." My dad said.

"Man, there ain't no "us" no more." Daryl said. "Everyone's everywhere. That small group we had back in the beginning, we could do anythang. That was right. That's what I know."

I became saddened. Daryl's right. That's what I was talking about. I thought about the group we had back in Atlanta and it made me even more sad. Sometimes, I wish we never would have left and came here. None of this ever would have happened. Plus, we would still have so many people. Glenn, Abraham, Sasha, Tyreese.

"Well, you wanna come home to Alexandria, then?" My dad continued his conversation with Daryl.

"No. I'll go back to Hilltop, check on Maggie and the baby."

My mouth dropped open. _He's picking Maggie over my dad? _Then, I remembered why he doesn't want to come home. _Negan._ "Man, this sucks." I said out loud. I went back to my room.

* * *

I practically collapsed onto the bed when I entered my room. What a day. I sighed heavily. I thought about jerky Justin, how he acted and calling me "Stab-a-gal." Something is going to have to be done with him. Then, I thought about Brittany, that poor girl. That must have been traumatizing for her. She's only fifteen. Thinking about her made me think of Zane. I can't believe he did that. He seemed like such a nice guy. Maybe he really did change? Did I do the right thing today? I had to stop myself because if I go there, I'll never get over myself. Lastly, I thought about what Daryl said to my dad. It makes me so sad. I miss the way things were. I sighed again. "I need a drink." I slowly got up and made my way over to the kitchen area. I had a bottle of vodka in the cabinet. I grabbed a glass, filled it with ice then poured in some vodka, then I filled the rest of it with cranberry juice. I took a sip. "Mm." I said. This used to be my go-to drink back in the day. I drank that down in seconds. It was just so good. I was about to make another one, but I stared at the bottle of vodka. I took a sip. I shrugged. I started just drinking right out of the bottle. What the hell, you know?

I decided to take my bottle outside. It's such a nice night, perfect for drinking. I sat against a tree looking up at the stars. "So pretty." I was pretty drunk by now. I looked at the bottle. It was almost gone. "Damn." I laughed. "Might as well finish it." I tipped it back and downed it. I couldn't really taste it anymore anyway. "Ah." I said then I threw the bottle against a tree smashing it to pieces. I probably shouldn't stay out here too long. I should get back to my room.

I stumbled a little when I stood up. "Whoa." I laughed. I made my way over to the porch, but I tripped going up the stairs. "Oh shit." I laughed and just stayed there. "Guess I'm gonna sleep here for the night."

I must have fallen asleep, I don't know how long but I woke up to someone shaking me. "Abby? Abby, wake up." It was Daryl.

"Huh?"

"Abby, what are you doin' out here?"

I suddenly felt a pain and realized I had to pee. "Oh, I gotta go to the bathroom." I quickly stood up

"Yeah, go to the bathroom." Said Daryl.

I practically ran in there. My bladder was filled, I drank that whole bottle of vodka, didn't I? Shit.

I stood up after doing my business, and I instantly felt sick to my stomach. "Oh man." I turned and puked into the toilet. It was a lot of puke, too. At least I felt better, though.

When I walked out of the bathroom, Daryl was standing there.

"Ya alright?" He asked me.

"Uh…yeah." I said. I felt a little embarrassed.

"Was you drinkin'?"

I nodded. Then, put my head down. We were quiet for a minute.

"Well, come on. Get to bed. You'll feel better after you sleep."

"Yeah." Daryl walked with me to my room. "Thanks, Daryl. And I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Just don't do that often."

I nodded. He was about to leave but I stopped him by saying, "you were right about what you said." He gave me a questioning look. "I heard you talking to my dad. Everyone_ is_ everywhere. We never see each other anymore. And we _could_ do anything when it was just us." He gave me a look in agreement and we were both quiet for a minute. "I wish we never left Atlanta."

Daryl nodded. "Yeah, me too."

* * *

We arrived at Hilltop late the next morning. My head was killing me. What made it worse was that we took horses. I rode with my dad. Probably one of the worst things to do when hungover is ride a fucking horse.

When we arrived, we were met by Maggie. She had a black eye. She filled us in on what happened. Apparently, Gregory got some guy to attack Maggie. Enid tried to help and she got hurt, too. Now, Maggie plans on killing Gregory. I don't know how I feel about the whole thing.

My dad and I were on Maggie's balcony with her and Hershel Jr. He looks just like Glenn. It made me happy.

"He's a little stinker." Maggie said.

"He's just perfect." My dad said. "He really is." He kissed his little forehead.

"Yeah." Maggie said. "I think I'll keep him."

"My turn." I held my hands out for him, my dad handed him to me. "Hi, little guy." I smiled. "How sweet are you?" I pinched his little cheek. Maggie smiled.

"You can take him in if you want?"

"Sure." I said and walked inside with him. I sat on the floor and played with him for a long time. It was so nice seeing Glenn's son. This baby honestly feels like my nephew, since Glenn was like a big brother to me.

Suddenly, Maggie walked in the room. "It's time."

My smile faded and things became serious again. She put Hershel to bed then the rest of us went outside.

* * *

Everyone was gathered outside in the dark. Gregory was up high on a piece of wood with a noose around his neck. I swallowed hard.

"I don't want to do this." Maggie said. "But people need to understand that at Hilltop, the punishment fits the crime." She turned to Gregory. "Do you have any final words?"

Gregory began whimpering. "What you're doing isn't right. Somebody stop this, please. Killing me in the dead of night because you're ashamed."

"You're wrong." Maggie said. "I'm not ashamed." She nodded at Daryl. He went to move the board out from his feet.

"Stop this! Please! Now, for the love of God, stop it!" Gregory cried.

"Maggie, stop!" Michonne yelled. "Wait!" I saw what she was looking at. Two children had snuck out of bed and were outside watching. But it was too late. Gregory was already hanging. I grimaced.

"Get the children back in bed." Maggie commanded. Two women rushed them back inside. "I made this decision. But this is not the beginning of something. I don't want to go through it again." I watched Gregory's body swing back and forth. "Cut him down."

* * *

We finally arrived home at Alexandria the next day. It's been a whole week since I have been here.

"Abby!" Judith ran to me as soon as I opened the door. "Hey, kid." I picked her up and hugged her. Alice, the babysitter, smiled.

"Was she good?" My dad asked her.

"She was an angel." Alice smiled.

"Abby, read to me tonight?" Judy asked in the most innocent voice.

"Not tonight, Judy." I put her down.

"Pwease!" She jumped.

"Judy, let Abby rest. She's very tired." My dad said and picked her up. "I'll read to you."

"Abby do it better." Judith pouted. We all laughed.

* * *

I took a shower as soon as I got into my room. It felt so nice. The Sanctuary doesn't have hot water like it used to. I got out and dried myself off, but I stared at myself in the mirror before putting my clothes on. I have been doing this a lot lately. I don't know why? I still look the same. It's almost like I'm waiting for myself to change colors or something. I sighed. Then, I put my sleep clothes on. I call it sleep clothes and not pajamas because I don't really wear pjs. I just wear a regular pair of shorts and a t-shirt.

I finally laid down on the bed. My bed is where I do some of my best thinking. I thought about what happened with Gregory. I still don't know how I feel about it. I mean…what he did to Maggie was wrong and he did deserve to die. I think it was the way that she did it. Like maybe she should have just killed him right then and there instead of stringing him high up for all to see. I don't know. I sighed.

I heard a knock at the door. "You can come in." I said. It was my dad. Good. I have been wanting to talk to him about something.

"Hey, everything okay?"

"Yeah." I shrugged. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"I just thought I'd check on you after what happened yesterday."

"Oh yeah." I shrugged again. "It's pretty rough but I think it had to happen."

"Yeah." My dad said then sighed.

"Are _you_ okay?"

He hesitated. "…yeah, I am." He nodded.

"Good." I smiled.

He smiled back. "Well, I just wanted to check on you." He began walking out of the room.

"Dad, I wanna go away for a while." I blurted out.

He stopped and came back into the room a little giving me a questioning look. "You wanna go away for a while?"

"Yeah, like on a run." I stated. "I can look for some stuff. And we need a lot of stuff." I let out small laugh.

"Okay…why?"

"I just want to help." I shrugged.

"You do help. A lot."

"Yeah, but…I just want to…get away for a while. I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just that—

"It's okay, Abby. I understand." My dad reassured me. "When do you plan on leaving?"

"Well, tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Baby, you just got back."

"I know but…I figured it would be better that way, you know? Before I get all adjusted and everything."

My dad seemed reluctant. "Okay." He finally said and shrugged. "And how long do you think you'll be gone?"

"I don't know. A few weeks maybe?" I said. He was giving me another questioning look. "I want to go out far. Farther than any of us have been before."

"That's dangerous, especially by yourself, you know?"

"I'll be fine."

"I don't know. Maybe you should see if someone will come with you. I'm sure Daryl wouldn't mind."

I perked up a little. Daryl and I alone together. That would be great. Then, I remembered the whole reason why I wanted to do this. "Dad, I just want to go by myself. I'll be fine. I promise. If I run into trouble, I'll come right home after that."

He was giving me a dissatisfied look. "Well, okay. You just be careful, you hear?"

"Yeah. Of course." I nodded. We kissed each other goodnight.

"Goodnight, baby." My dad said.

"Yeah, night." I smiled to myself as soon as he closed the door. I laid back on the bed. I have been wanting to do this since the start. This is gonna be great. I thought as I stared at the ceiling.

* * *

**Hello everyone! Abby is back! I hope you all liked this first chapter! Please review and tell me what you thought of this chapter and also what you thought of the mid season premiere! :D**


	2. Ultimate Grand Prize

I started my day with a nice, hot shower. I'm not going to be able to do that for a while, so I might as well enjoy it while I can. The next thing I did was packed some clothes and supplies that I will need on my trip, you know? The essentials.

I put my gun in its holster and took a look at myself in the mirror. I nodded. I'm ready.

I could smell something good as I made my way down the stairs. My dad, Michonne and Judith were all in the kitchen. I went in and joined them. "Smells good." I said.

"Good morning." Michonne smiled.

"Morning." I said while getting a mug out of the cupboard. I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat at the bar counter.

"Michonne packed you some bags of food for your trip." My dad informed me.

"Aw, really? Thanks that's so nice." I said while stirring the sugar in my coffee. "Or maybe you're just trying to get rid of me so you guys can have some alone time." I raised my eyebrows and sipped my coffee.

"Oh stop." Michonne laughed. My dad and I chuckled as well. I stuffed the bags Michonne prepared for me in my backpack.

"Try not to be gone too long." My dad said to me. "We're starting work on the bridge today."

I nodded. "I'm just about ready to go."

"You're not going anywhere until you eat something." Michonne said to me.

"Nah, I'm good." I waved her off. She gave me a scary mom look. I sighed. "Fine." I put one pancake on my plate and took a bite. "I'm eating." I said with my mouth full.

My dad and Michonne were carrying on some conversation as I finished eating. Just then, I had a thought. I should see him before I leave. I looked at the plate of pancakes. There will be extra. I wrapped two of them in a napkin without anyone noticing and headed for the door.

"Where ya goin'?" My dad asked me.

I turned only slightly. "I'll be right back."

* * *

"Hey, it's me." I stood outside the cell. "I brought you some pancakes." I slid them under the bars. He just sat there. I sighed. "Look, will you please not ignore me?"

He finally turned his head and looked at me. Then, he slowly got up and came closer to the door. "It's been a week. I thought maybe you got sick of me like everybody else."

I sighed again. "No. No, I was at the Sanctuary taking care of things." I smirked just then because I realized what I said.

"Oh, so you're the new me?" He almost sounded amused.

"Yeah right? I'll never be you. I'm way better than you ever were." I crossed my arms over my chest and smirked.

"You gotta smartass mouth, baby girl."

"Yes. Yes, I do." I let out a small laugh. I actually think I saw a smile tug at the corner of his mouth. "Come on, eat. While they're still hot."

He gave me an annoyed look but he began eating. "You came down here for something, not just to bring me pancakes."

"Uh, yeah." I cleared my throat. "I'm going away for a while." He looked up at me. "On a run. I don't know when I'll be back. I just wanted to let you know because I know you'll miss me while I'm gone." I smirked again.

"Oh yeah. I'll miss your smart mouth." He said sarcastically.

"You will. You're miss the sound of my voice, especially at night." I let out a small laugh. That's usually when I come talk to him.

"Yeah, I sure will. I'll have to rely on your dad to keep me company. Giving me that side eye and shit."

I laughed again. "Well…I should probably get going."

"Hey." He slammed himself against the bars and held on with both hands. It honestly startled me for a second. "You be careful out there and come home in one piece. That's not a request."

I blinked a few times while taking in what he said because it kind of caught me off guard. "Uh…yeah, of course. I will." I smiled. "Maybe I'll even meet some people out there and bring them back."

He glared at me. "That's what you should be afraid of."

"Hey, my future husband could be out there." I smirked. "It's about time I met someone." I started to walk away.

"Are you a virgin, Abby?"

My face flushed immediately and I got all flustered. "What? W-why would you ask me that?"

He let out a little laugh. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Screw you, man. What do you know about it?"

"A lot, actually. Just like I could tell you were the day I met you." He teased.

I became angry. "You're a jackass." I started to leave but he stopped me again.

"Abby, wait, come back. I'm only joking." He called. I slowly walked back over with an annoyed look on my face. "That's good that you haven't." I gave him another look. "Really. It is. But can I ask you a question?" I stood there waiting for him to ask me whatever it was that he was going to ask me. "How have you avoided it?"

His question caught me off guard. "Uh…I just didn't want to. I dated guys in high school before but none that I wanted to…do it with."

"I see. Well, I hope that when it happens, it's the right time and what _you _want."

"…thanks." I let out a small laugh. "Well, this has been a really awkward morning so I'm going to go ahead and end this conversation and do what I should have done a long time ago." I started walking again.

"Remember what I told you. Stay safe."

"Aye-aye, Captain." I laughed. I saluted him before I walked out the door. I didn't miss the look he gave me, though. "Bye, Negan."

* * *

"You can take a car." My dad told me. He brought Judith with him. "I just filled the tank. I'm leaving you one can of fuel."

"Are you sure? I mean…can we spare it. You know, with the fuel running so low?"

"Yeah. I am not letting you go without a car, especially if you're going far out."

"Well, you realize there's a chance I might come home without it, right?"

My dad sighed. "It happens."

I nodded. "Well, I'll say you later." I threw my bag in the passenger seat. My dad and I hugged.

"Be careful. Please be safe."

"You know I will." I smiled at him. "Bye-bye, Judy." I waved at her. She looked sad. "Aw, damnit." I smiled. "Come here." I held my arms out and my dad handed her to me. I kissed her cheek. "It's okay. I'll be back before you know it." Her facial expression still didn't change. "Can I see a smile? Let me see a smile before I go." She put her head down and tried to hide the smile that was appearing. I heard my dad laugh. "I-I see a smile. I see a smile." I started poking at her sides, which made her giggle. I laughed too. "Gimme kiss." We kissed each other. "You be good now." I handed her back to my dad. I gave him a kiss as well. "Bye, daddy."

Then, I got in the car, started the engine and waved at them. I was off on my journey.

* * *

I traveled around all day. I had found a small neighborhood and searched around in all the houses. The only thing I found was a flashlight and some expired canned goods. The flashlight was pretty cool, though. It had a red blinker S.O.S light on it to signal for help, a small knife and you could also hang it if you wanted to use it as a lantern. It was really bright. It should come in handy.

It was getting dark and I needed to find some place to stay for the night. I am not setting up camp in the woods when I'm by myself or even sleeping in the car. There's no one to watch my back. So, my best bet is a house or something.

Just up ahead, I saw a cemetery. There was a little shed or something inside. Am I really about to sleep in a shed? I guess it's better than the ground. I parked my car by a bunch of trees so it would be a little hidden then I headed over there. I checked the inside, it was clear. The shed seemed a little bigger than what it appeared to be on the outside. That's when I noticed a little trap door or something. I opened it with my gun up. I couldn't see anything so I got out my flashlight and shined some light down there. I could see the bottom. What was really strange, though, is that the floor looked like an actual floor, like it was wood or something? "Hello?" I yelled down. I banged my fist against the wall a few times to check for walkers. When none came, I went down.

I began looking around immediately. It was so neat! It was like a little secret underground home! It was really dark, though. Good thing I have this bright light. The place was clear so, I decided to get settled in.

Suddenly, my stomach began to growl. "Yeah, yeah, I know." I rubbed it. I emptied the contents of my backpack. "Let's see what mama packed." The first thing I saw was a bag of peanuts. That's good enough. I could go for something salty.

I ate the whole bag then stuffed everything else back in my backpack. I took a gulp of my water then absentmindedly looked around. There was a very small window on the ceiling letting in the moonlight. If not for that window, it would be pitch black in here. Well, and my flashlight. I was about to take another drink when something stopped me. I stared at the bottle, it was half gone. I need to save the rest. I only brought five bottles with me. I hope I find some more or I might have to cut this trip a lot shorter than I want to. I put my bottle back in my bag then laid down.

I sighed while looking up through the window. So, much has happened in just a year and a half. Everyone is different. My dad changed for the good. I started thinking about Negan. Our conversation we had earlier today. He actually asked me if I was a virgin. I feel like if I wasn't, then I wouldn't have cared if he asked me. I don't want to wait anymore, I just want it to happen already. Who could I do it with? Alden is nice. But I haven't seen or talked to him for a while. Daryl would be awesome. I smiled to myself. I quickly shook that thought. Stop it. That was just a crush. I'm over that because I know it's never going to happen. I sighed and rolled over.

* * *

I awoke several hours later, I could tell because the sunlight was coming in through the window. I thought I heard a noise, but I guess I didn't. I should get up anyway, though. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and sat up. My throat was super dry so I took out my water and took a sip. "Ah."

Suddenly, I heard voices above me and then the trap door flew open. "Shit." I quietly said. I gathered my shit up and quickly hid in the closet that was in the room I was in. The door was like shutters so I could see through them. I heard heavy footsteps and a woman screaming. I saw her being thrown into the room onto the cot and then a man came in after. He was a big guy. My heart was racing and I had to try to slow my breathing down. He bent the woman over the cot easily. "No please." She begged. My eyes went wide as he started taking her clothes off.

_What are you doing, Abby? _I thought to myself. _You have a gun! Go! Help her! _My feet were glued to the floor, though. And then it started. All I could do is watch. It was impossible to drowned out her screaming. He finally got off her after what seemed like forever. She fell to the ground and cried. I felt so bad for her. Then, the man came back into the room with what looked like a shovel. My eyes widened again. "No! Please!" _Abby, help her! Hurry! _I took a step forward but then froze again. He hit her with it. Then, again. I covered my mouth. I wanted to look away but I couldn't. He continued beating her until she was dead. I looked down. _I had two chances to help that woman…and I didn't. _He started dragging her body out of the room. I looked down at the floor and that's when my eyes darted right to a peanut on the floor. My heart skipped a beat. I must have dropped one last night. If he sees that, he's going to know someone is in here. I held my breath as I heard his footsteps coming back into the room. _Please don't notice it. Please don't see it. _He walked to the other side of the room and out of my sight. I could hear him doing something but didn't know what. He walked back over, I watched his footsteps. And then…my heart stopped. He stepped right on the peanut making a loud "crunch" sound. My eyes couldn't have gotten any wider. He stopped and looked down at his foot. _Oh God! _He examined the remains of the peanut.

"Come on out." He said. "I know you're in here." For a second, I thought he was speaking directly to me. He spun around. "Where are ya?" He was about to leave, I took the safety off my gun and he must have heard it because he stepped back into the room. I held my gun ready to shoot if he came in. He stood outside the closet door, I was looking directly at him but he couldn't see me. Suddenly, he threw the door open and I pulled the trigger…twice. He went down. I stepped out from my hiding place and looked down at him, he was still alive but barely holding on. I looked over and spotted the shovel that he used to kill the woman. I grabbed it. I took one last look at him before swinging it down and slicing the top of his head off. He was dead. I was finally able to breathe. He deserved that. I thought.

I grabbed my bag and headed out. As I walked through the hallway, I saw the woman he killed. She was sitting against the wall reaching for me. She had turned. Her body and face was really massed up. I cringed at the sight. I took out my knife and walked over to her. "I'm sorry that I didn't help you. I should have." I said sadly. I stabbed her in the dome, putting her down.

I swallowed hard. I just want to get the fuck out of here.

* * *

I was back on the road again. I had a map and was trying to find the best route to go. The farthest anyone in our group has gone was Washington. I wanted to go farther than that. I wanted to be the one known for going the farthest. My goal was Ohio. Maybe even a little farther, but we'll see. With the route I chose to go, I would have to go through Pennsylvania. I also have to be careful of my fuel. My dad left me one container. I should go the farthest I can until it's almost empty. That way, I can fill up for the ride back home. I'm probably looking at about an eight hour drive. Good thing it's early.

* * *

I made it to just outside of Meadville, Pennsylvania before the tank ran low. I made a few wrong turns but I found my way shortly after. I decided to park the car somewhere so that it wouldn't get to completely empty. I parked it sort of in the woods and covered it with tons of branches so it would be hidden. I walked the rest of the way. I wanted to check out some of the places here. Maybe I'll find something worth looking for. We were low on everything. It would be amazing if I found some ammunition. Maybe some other weapons, too.

As I was walking around, I found myself thinking about that woman. Why didn't I just help her? What kept me from making a move? Was I really that scared? I think it was more of what he did to her than the man himself.

I passed a sign that said, Andover. That sounds familiar. I dug my map out to look at my route. I smiled. I'm so close to Ohio. I was getting tired, but if I just push a little more then I'll be there. I will have reached my goal. I kept walking.

There's about three hours of daylight left, if that. I hope it won't take me that long. Suddenly, I heard a car. I turned around quickly, it was still pretty far away but it was coming. "Shit!" I sprinted into the woods and hid behind a tree. I watched the truck speed passed me. I wonder where they are going? I'm going to follow them. I started running. I knew there was no way in hell that I would be able to stay on its trail, but I was going to try.

* * *

I kept walking. I stopped in a few places. I found several knives, some more food and other supplies that would come in handy. I haven't found anything important enough yet. I'm not going home until I do. This whole trip cannot be a waste. With the fuel I've used and the distance I have traveled, there's no way I can go home empty handed.

I continued walking. I got to a causeway. The water was beautiful! I stopped to look around for a while. I went down on the rocks and took some pictures on my iPod just like as if I were on vacation. I smiled to myself. The sunset on the water was just gorgeous. I would have to show my dad and Michonne when I got back.

It had gotten pretty dark, though, so I decided to back track a little. There were a bunch of cottages just down the road, I could stay there for the night. I looked around for a nice one. There was a road called Leach, something about it just caught my eye so I went down that street.

I found a little blue house quite a distance down the road. It was perfect. I went inside and checked around. It was clear. It was actually a really nice house. It looked so much better on the inside than the outside. The living room was cool, with a fireplace. I will definitely be using that tonight. There was a bedroom in the back and another out in the family room. That room was cool, too but the thing I didn't like about it was that it was more like a screened in porch than a room. All the windows would have to be covered.

I sat my stuff down and gathered up all the towels and blankets I could find. Then, I covered up all the windows back there. "There." I said. "That should be good." I started to feel a little weak and realized I hadn't eaten anything since last night. "I guess it's time to eat then."

* * *

Later that night, I laid on the couch in the living room. This place was so nice. It felt like I had my own house. I realized just then how different my life was. How different it will be. A normal person's life is they go to school, get a job, go to school again, start a career, get married, have children, raise them, your kids have kids so you have grandchildren then you die happy. That's not how things are now. You get up, fight, go to bed. Get up and fight, go to bed. Same thing everyday. Some people are lucky enough to find someone in this. I don't think that will be me. But I want it so bad. I put my head down. If that stuff never happened with the Gov. and we were still at the prison, then maybe things would be a little different. We would all be together. Everyone would be happy and so many people would still be alive. I miss everyone. Just then, an idea popped into my head. Maybe we all could come here. Like for a weekend or something? It would be like a little vacation. That would be so fun! I wonder if the others would go for it? It would just be my dad, Michonne, me, Judy, Daryl, Carol and Maggie and her baby. It would be just like old times. Maybe? I have to talk to my dad about that when I get home.

I blew out the candles I lit in this room and soon drifted off to sleep. This is the comfiest couch I ever laid on.

* * *

I got up early the next morning and went straight into the bathroom to groom myself. I had my shirt off when I looked in the mirror. I was really thin. I could see my ribs and my hip bones. My eyes were too big for my face. It shows how low on food we were. Or maybe I just wasn't eating? I don't know what's wrong with me. Maybe I _am_ anorexic. My dad and Michonne think I am. I have always been very slim, though. And so has my mom but no one ever said anything to her about it. People always bother me about everything. I'll try to do better. I'll try to eat more. I nodded at myself in the mirror. I finished changing my clothes and took off. I still had places to go.

I walked across the causeway. There was a sign about halfway through that said, _Welcome to Ohio! _I got excited. I reached my goal! I made it to Ohio! Now all I have to do is find that one special thing that's going to make this whole trip worthy. I need my ultimate grand prize.

I continued my journey. I saw a sign for a campground ahead. I could check that out, there might be some stuff around that area. I made my way down the road. I started to hear noise, voices even. I thought I was just going crazy at first but then it got louder as I was getting closer. I saw large gates and a man on lookout over the place. My mouth almost dropped to the ground. I found another community!


	3. Feeling A Moment

I can't believe it! Another community? This is it! This is the ultimate grand prize that I was talking about. If I can reason with these people and get them to trade with us, then our world will be even bigger! Maybe they even know more communities around here! This is great. I just have to get through with the worst part, which is introducing myself. Break the ice.

I stepped out so the guy could see me. "Hello." I said. He looked around like I startled him then down at me. "Hello." I said again. He stood up and pointed a gun at me.

"Stay right there!" He yelled.

"Whoa!" I put my hands up. "It's okay. I'm not here to hurt anyone."

"What do you want?"

I smiled and slowly put my hands down. "I have a proposal to make."

* * *

I sat there nervously waiting to talk with someone. They took my weapons and my bag and locked me in a back room or something, which I understand because we would do the same thing. I just hope they are going to give me a chance to talk. They didn't kill me immediately so that's a good sign.

I heard footsteps and perked up. A man opened the door, it was not the man from earlier. He stood there and just looked at me.

"Hi." I said.

He nodded at me. "You alone?"

"No. Well…yes, I am right now but I have a group. A big group. I'm from a community sort of like this place. They're far away, though. I traveled a long way."

He was looking at me like I was an idiot. "So, what are you here for?"

"Well…I'm just going to get right to the point." I cleared my throat. "I saw your community along my travels and…I wanted to see if you would be interested in working together with our communities."

"Communities?" He inquired.

"Yes, that's right." I stood up for the first time. "We're trying to build something. Trying to expand. If were working with people all the way up here, we could be even bigger. Greater. Stronger. All of us."

He was staring at me, he took a minute to reply. "Where's your community? Communitie_s_?" He corrected himself.

"Uh, I can't…I can't tell you that. I don't really…I don't know you yet." I shook my head. I think I saw a smirk from him but it was gone quickly. He kind of reminded me of my dad when he did that.

"Okay. Tell me why I should trust you?"

_Whoa! That was almost scary! _I let out a small laugh. "You sounded just like my dad when you said that." He was waiting for an answer. I became serious again and cleared my throat. "You should trust me because I didn't kill your man out there. I could have."

"You think I should trust you because you didn't kill one of us?" He let out a laugh.

"Yes." I said completely serious. He didn't look convinced. "Look, you look like a family man. I bet you have kids. Don't you want the best for them? For your people? We both know the answer to that already. Give me a chance to prove myself. I'll stay here as long as you want me to. But…before we move any farther, I'm gonna need to ask you a few questions."

He snorted. "You come into _my _community and want to ask _me _questions?"

"Absolutely." I nodded. "I have to make sure you're not bad people. You don't seem like bad people but it's getting harder and harder to tell these days. Doesn't really make a difference anymore. Wouldn't you agree?"

He had a smug look on his face and didn't answer me right away. "I like you, girl. I'll answer your questions."

I gave him a small smile. "How many walkers have you killed?"

"Walkers?"

"The dead."

He blinked a few times. "We call 'em freaks. And I don't know. It's hard to keep track. Probably close to a hundred."

"How many people have you killed?"

"I've killed a lot of people. I don't even know how many by now."

"Why?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

He leaned forward. "So my family and all these people could still be here."

That is something my dad would say. I smiled a little. "I think this is going to work."

"Yeah, well, I don't know if we're going to go through with it yet. I have to talk with my people. So…" he stood up, "make yourself comfortable because I can't let you leave."

"I fully understand that." I said.

He started to leave. "Oh, I didn't get your name."

"Abby." I said. "And you?"

"Burke."

"Nice to meet you, Burke. I know things are going to work out. But you go ahead and take all the time you need."

He stared at me for a moment then he finally nodded. "Yeah, I will." He said quickly then left locking the door behind him. I smiled to myself. I have got a good feeling about this.

* * *

I was in there for a while before the door opened again. Burke came back. I stood up. "My people would like to hear from you." He said. "I talked to them but they want to hear it from you. I do, too."

I nodded even though I have a nervous feeling in my gut. I swallowed hard and followed him out.

He led me out to a sort of stage outside. There were tons of people out there. _Oh my God! How am I going to do this? _I looked back at Burke, he gestured to me to say something. I swallowed and cleared my throat. "H-hello." I spoke. "My name is Abby and I'm from a community. Not from around here. It's pretty far from here actually." _Don't say that, idiot! You'll make them not even want to give it a try! _"Well…not that far. It took me maybe seven hours to get here—

"Get to the point!" Someone yelled.

"Right." I nodded. "I would like all of you to work with all of us. We can help each other. We can rebuild and start getting the world back to the way it was before. If we can expand to all the way up here, then we can expand all the over the place. For a better future." I stopped.

Everyone was quiet for a moment.

"How do we know if this is legit?" Someone said. I saw some of them nodding their heads.

"Yeah, you might just rip us all off." Another person said. All of a sudden, they were all saying stuff.

"Hey!" I yelled. "Hey, listen up!" They all slowly stopped talking. "Look, I'm not here to mess around. My people have been through a lot of shit. Shit that I would never wish on anyone else. That's how you know this is legit. Because I…WE would never do that to someone else." I finished. They were quiet again. I watched them all sharing looks. "So, what do you say? Wanna give it a shot?"

"Abby, listen," Burke started, "I want to believe you but I think my people can agree on this…you've just laid a lot on us. We need time to think."

"And I completely understand that. I told you already. Take as much time as you need."

He nodded. "Well, you're welcome to stay with us while we're deciding."

I smiled. "I'd like that. It will give me a chance to get to know you." I looked at the crowd. "All of you."

* * *

Later that day, Burke showed me around the whole place. The property was a decent size. I don't think it's as big as Alexandria, but there is a good amount of people.

"You can stay with my family tonight." Burke told me.

"Oh, really? That's so nice." I smiled.

"I've got a son named Dom. He's around your age, and a little girl named Jessica." He informed me.

"I'm excited to meet them."

He led me up to a porch and stopped me. "Look, you haven't given me any reason to feel threatened but…if you do anything to my family, I will kill you. Just wanted you to know."

I was silent for a minute. Once again, this guy is reminding me of my dad. "I wouldn't dream of it." I said seriously.

He nodded then walked into his home. "Dom, Jessica! I want you to meet someone." He called. A little girl around eight, maybe, ran out immediately.

"Daddy!" She said happily. She jumped into her dad's arms.

"Hey, sweetheart." Burke said with a laugh. The scene made me smile. He held her for a few seconds then set her down on her feet. "Where's your brother?"

"In his room." She replied.

"Jessica, this is Abby." Burke said to his daughter. He turned to me. "She likes to be called Jessica, not Jess and not Jessie." He laughed.

"Okay." I said with a laugh. "Hi, Jessica."

She smiled back and looked excited. "Hi, Abby! Will you play with me?"

"Uh, sure." I laughed.

"After we eat, Jessica." Burke said. "Dominique, get out here!" I heard a commotion in the back.

I stood there awkwardly not really sure what to say or do. "You've got a nice little house here." I said just to be saying something.

Finally, Dominique came out to join us. "Sorry, dad." He said. "I was—

He stopped when he saw me…and so did I. He was tall, really tan with black curly hair. He was very cute.

"Dom, this is Abby. She's going to be staying with us for a while." Burke then said.

"Uh, hi." He said. He put his hand to his forehead for a second like he did something stupid. "Sorry." He came over to me and put his hand out. "Hi, I'm Dom."

"Hi." I smiled. We shook hands. He kept staring at me, it was making me a little nervous.

"Son, why don't you take Abby and get her settled in? I figured she could stay in your room and you can sleep on the couch."

"Sure." Said Dom.

"Oh, no. That's okay." I said. "I don't want to be any trouble. I'll just sleep on the couch."

"No way." Dom said. "Me sleeping in a comfy bed while a chick sleeps on the couch. You can have my bed."

I blinked a few times. _Wow, what a gentlemen. _I smiled. "Well, okay. If you really don't mind?"

"Absolutely." He said. "Come on, I'll show you to your room." I followed Dom down the hall and he took me into his room. The first thing I noticed was a skateboard leaning against his wall.

"You skate?" I asked him.

"Huh?" He glanced at his skateboard. "Oh yeah."

"Me too." I grinned.

"Really?"

"Yup. It's been a while but…yeah."

"That's awesome. We should skate sometime."

"Sure." I laughed.

"So, yeah, you can stay in here."

"Thanks." I threw my bag on his bed.

"Is there anything you need right now?"

"Um, actually…I would love a shower." I let out a small laugh.

"Oh, sure." Dom said. "Bathroom's right down the hall."

"Cool, thanks." I gathered up what I needed from my bag and headed into the bathroom.

I closed the door and looked at myself in the mirror. _This is so weird. _I thought. I almost laughed. Dom sure is a cutie, though. I got a feeling in my stomach that felt like butterflies. I smiled.

* * *

I was fixing my hair after my shower when there a knock at the door. "Hey, Abby. It's Dom. I just wanted to let you know that dinner's ready."

"Oh okay. Cool. I'll be right out." I finished what I needed to do then joined them in the dining area. I sat at the opposite end of the table facing Burke with Jessica and Dom at my sides. It looked like they had some kind of soup. It smelled really good whatever it was. Burke got everyone some and handed the bowls down.

"Thank you." I said. I didn't waste any time. I dug in. I was starving.

"You must have been on the road for a long time." Burke said.

I shook my head. "No, not really. A day maybe." I said with my mouth full.

"Your community must not be very stocked then."

I stopped and looked up at him. They were looking at me. I realized that he was commenting on the way I was eating. Probably also how thin I am. I became a little embarrassed. "We're doing okay." I said. I let out a small laugh and tucked a stray hair behind my ear. "I guess I just forget to eat sometimes." I started eating again. "This is good." I saw them smile.

* * *

Dom and I sat on the porch talking after dinner. He brought out a bottle of liquor and we were sharing it. It was nice because I haven't had a drinking buddy in a long time. It was around ten, I think. I already like them a lot. They are all super nice.

Just then, Jessica ran out on the porch. She stood in front of me and put her hands on her hips. "Hey, you said you would play with me."

I let out a small laugh and was about to say something but Dom spoke first. "Jessica, you're going to bed. You got school in the morning."

"No fair! You said you would read to me tonight!"

"Let dad read to you." Dom smiled.

"You tell stories better." Jessica pouted. I had to smirk because she reminded me of Judith right there.

"Tell you what, I'll tell you two bedtime stories tomorrow night."

"Okay!" Jessica said excitedly. Dom laughed and kissed the top of her head. She skipped inside.

"She's cute." I said. "I have a little sister, too."

"Really? How old?"

"She's almost four. Her name's Judith."

Dom smiled.

"I had a little brother, too, but…" I trailed off.

"I'm sorry." He said. There was a brief silence. "Who else did you lose?"

I looked down and then around before answering. "Well, I lost a ton of friends…and my mom."

"Me too." Dom said quietly.

"It sucks but…at least we're still alive, you know?" I had tears in my eyes. I took a sip of my drink.

"Yeah." We just sat there quietly for a moment. I started to feel very tired. "Hey, it's getting warmer now. You wanna go to the lake tomorrow?"

I smiled. "Sure, that would be fun."

"Yeah, maybe we can go kayaking or something."

"Cool." Was all I replied. There was another awkward silence.

"You wanna go to bed, don't you?" Dom laughed, which made me laugh.

"Yeah, I'm sorry." I said with a smile. "I just got like super tired all of a sudden."

"That's okay. I don't wanna keep you."

"Alright then." I stood up and stretched. "Goodnight."

"Yeah, night."

I glanced down at the liquor bottle, it was almost empty. "Hey, do you mind if I…" I pointed at the bottle.

"Oh, sure. Not at all." He handed it to me.

"Thanks. It just…it helps me sleep." I laughed.

He smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah." I smiled then headed inside.

I collapsed onto the bed. It was so nice and comfy. I smiled to myself. This feels so cool. I don't even know why. It's just being on my own away from my family. Something made me giggle. I guzzled the rest of the alcohol and soon knocked out.

* * *

Dom took us to the lake the next day. He packed us some snacks in a little basket. It was just like a picnic. I said to bring alcohol if he had any. He also brought fishing rods. I didn't know why. I guess he plans on fishing.

"Do you wanna swim first?" Dom asked me.

"Uh, I think I'll have a little drink first." I said grabbing the bottle of wine he brought.

"Okay, sure."

We sat on a blanket. I poured each of us a glass and took a sip. It was good. "So, how long have you guys been here?"

"Almost since the start."

My eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yeah, uh…we're from around here. Our community was actually a campground. We had a camper up here so once things got bad at home, we came here."

"Oh nice." I sipped my wine.

"What about you? You haven't told me where you're from yet."

I blinked a few times. _Oh yeah, that's right. I didn't. _"Oh, sorry." I shook my head. "I'm originally from Georgia but we moved around a lot. We're in Virginia now."

"You traveled all the way from Virginia?"

"Yeah." I bit my lip to hold back my smile. "D.C. is the farthest we've been out but…I wanted to go out farther. So, I made Ohio my goal."

"I see. Well, you like it so far?"

I took a sip of my wine before answering and nodded. "Yeah. You guys seem nice."

"Good. You're pretty cool yourself."

I gave him a look then smiled. "I didn't say cool. I said nice."

"Well, _I_ meant cool." We smiled at each other.

I sighed. "Well, I'm ready to go for a swim." I finished my glass of wine and set it aside. "You coming?"

"Yeah." He stood up. I ran towards the water and got right in. It felt great. I floated on my back for a while. I closed my eyes and imagined I was on vacation with my family and nothing else around me was happening. I smiled. I was feeling a moment.

"Abby?" Dom said.

"Huh?" I sat up immediately. He brought me out of my reverie.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. I was just…relaxing." I laughed.

"I saw that."

I splashed him then we both laughed. We swam around for a while until we got sick of it. "So, what's the deal with the fishing rods?"

"Well, I thought we could go fishing, you know? Since we're here. See if we can catch anything."

I was quiet for a minute. "I never actually went fishing before."

"What? Really? We have to do it then." Dom seemed like he got excited. "Come on." He grabbed my hand.

* * *

Dom began putting these little balls on the ends of the fishing hooks. "What are those?" I asked.

"Dough balls."

I cocked an eyebrow. "Why don't you use worms?"

"Because you have to kill them…and…I don't like killing things. It's bad enough we have to kill the fish. But ya gotta eat, you know?"

I smiled at him. He's so sweet. I laughed.

"What?"

"Oh, it's just…before all this, back at home when it would rain and I would see worms on the sidewalk, I would pick them up and put them in the grass so they didn't lay there and dry up in the sun." I smiled. "If I did that now, people in my group would knock my head in." I giggled.

Dom laughed, too. "Keep savin' the worms." We smiled at each other.

Dom showed me what to do and we sat there waiting to get a bite. Shortly after, I got one. I started railing it in like he told me. I got it and looked at it. It was just a little one. "You got one." Dom said.

"Yeah." I smiled. "That was pretty fun."

"I know. It is fun." Dom said. "Keep doing it and you'll be a pro in no time."

Dom and I fished for a pretty long time. We caught so much fish! They were loving those dough balls. I see why Dom uses them. I had a pretty good time today. And now I know how to fish. That will always come in handy. And that's when I realized that, my ultimate grand prize wasn't just finding this community; it's the lessons I'm learning along this whole journey.

* * *

**Hey everyone! Thank you all for the reviews, favs and follows! I appreciate it and you so much! Please leave a review and tell me what you think so far! Do you think Burke and his people will go along with Abby's plan? Is it even a good idea or does it sound like more trouble than what it's ****worth? And what do you think will happen with Abby and her new friend? ;) Stay tuned to find out! (I post on Mondays)**


	4. Perfect Illusion

I have spent days at this new community and I have already grown pretty close with Dom and his family. We really hit it off, we have so much in common. I guess you could say we were dating. I liked him a lot; enough to lose my virginity to. I decided that that's what I wanted.

And, so, we planned a romantic evening together. Dom said we should go somewhere outside of the community, and I knew the perfect place. We gathered up what we needed and I took him to the cottage that I spent a night in before coming here. It's going to happen tonight. I smiled to myself.

We made sure the place was secure then I lit a bunch of candles while Dom got us some wine. There was a fire in the fireplace. Everything was looking good. I had this excited but nervous feeling in my stomach.

"Here you are." Dom handed me a glass.

"Thank you." I smiled and took a sip. There was a brief pause.

"I like it here." He said. "The fire is nice. You did a good job."

I grinned from ear to ear. "Yeah, I am the fire whisperer." I bragged.

"Yes, you are." He laughed. Then we laughed together. "So, when do I get to meet your dad? And your group?"

His question caught me off guard. "Um…well, first, I need _your _dad and the others to agree with my deal. I think it's been long enough. I'd say we know each other pretty well." I smirked.

Dom let out a small laugh. "Yeah." Was all he said. I gave him a weird look. He looked like he wanted to say something else. I didn't know if I should address it or not so I just didn't. I nervously tapped my fingers together. Finally I heard him sigh. "I was going to wait to tell you this, but…" He trailed off. I gave him a curious look. "I wanna come back with you; regardless of what my dad decides." He paused and grabbed my hand. I was surprised at what he just said. "I want to be with you. There's nothing here for me anymore. I want to see new things, I want to meet new people. You coming into my life was right and it's the prefect time."

I felt like an idiot. I had no idea what to say. I didn't know if I should laugh or start crying? I mean…I liked the idea. I liked it a lot and I like Dom a lot. So, why was a acting like this?

"Do you like that idea?" He pressed.

I nodded. Then, I finally found my voice. "Yeah, I do. Sorry, I don't know what I was…" I trailed off. "That's a great idea and I'd like that."

"Really?" His eyes widened a little. "For real?"

"Yeah." I smiled.

"You don't know how happy you just made me." He smiled back.

I returned his smile. "Well, then…show me." He gave me a serious look. "The bedroom." I pointed. He gave me a look. I finished the rest of my wine and headed back there. I sat on the bed and nervously bit my lip while waiting for him. I hope this is right.

I looked over and saw Dom awkwardly standing there. "You have a condom, right?"

"Uh…" He stupidly patted his pockets.

My eyes widened. "You didn't bring a condom?"

"Just kidding." He smiled and pulled it out then sat on the bed next to me.

"You idiot." I smacked his arm and laughed. He laughed too then he kissed me. We started taking each other's clothes off while still kissing. He moved down and planted soft kisses down my neck. It was nice but…I wasn't feeling anything "there."

He moved in front of me and I slowly laid back on the bed. He kissed down my body. I still wasn't feeling it.

He looked up at me so I faked a lascivious smile so he wouldn't worry. He continued what he was doing and made his way back up. I suddenly had a thought and then I got an extremely uncomfortable feeling. "Wait, Dom, stop." I panicked.

"What? What's wrong?" He asked. He seemed surprised.

"Just…just get up." I said. He got off of me and I sat up quickly and moved to the edge of the bed with my feet touching the ground. For a minute, no one said anything.

"Did I do something wrong?" Dom finally asked. I could tell he was confused…but not as much as me.

"No." I shook my head. "You didn't do anything wrong. I just-I don't want this. I thought I did but I don't. I'm sorry." I grabbed my shirt and pants and quickly left the room.

I put my clothes on and went back out into the living room. I sadly sat there on the couch. I have no idea what just happened, but I got that weird, uncomfortable feeling and everything just stopped. I hope Dom isn't mad at me.

A few minutes later, Dom, fully dressed, joined me in the living room. I couldn't look at him. "What happened back there?" He finally said.

I shook my head. "I-I don't know. It just didn't…feel right."

"That's okay. You don't like me like that." I finally looked him and he was sadly staring at the ground.

"No. That's not it." I said. "I do like you…it's just…it's me. It has nothing to do with you. It's all me. I promise."

He looked up at me. "It's okay, really. You don't have to explain." He gave me a quick smile, which I returned.

I sighed and looked down. "I feel like a terrible person, but…could we just be friends?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that." We both smiled at each other. That feeling finally went away and it felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I knew I had made the right choice. I was able to relax.

"Thanks for being so understanding." I smiled. "But we shouldn't waste the evening. Let's drink this wine and have a good time."

"I can do that." Dom said. We both laughed again and it was like all that just happened was forgotten.

* * *

"Okay, would you rather have a dragon or any car you want?" Dom asked me.

I almost choked on my wine laughing. "What kind of question is that?"

"I don't know. I just thought of it." He laughed.

"Well, the dragon. Obviously."

"Same." He said. "Your turn."

"Okay." I thought for a minute. "Would you rather know that we are alone in the universe or know what happens after we die?"

"Oh, that's a hard one. I'm gonna say…what happens after we die."

"I'm going to have to agree with that."

"Yeah. I have a simple one. Would you rather have a girl or a boy?"

"A girl." I answered quickly.

He nodded. "I would want a boy, though, so I can teach him guys things."

"Guy things." I raised my eyebrows then laughed. "Would you rather go to the past or the future?"

"Definitely the past."

"Same." I finished my wine and poured another glass.

"Would you rather talk like Yoda or breathe like Darth Vader?"

I gave him a stupid look and he laughed. "Yoda."

"I'd rather breathe like Darth Vader."

"Why?" I gave him another stupid look.

"Because I can be creepy." Dom imitated the breathing. Then laughed.

"Of course." I rolled my eyes. "Would you rather have an extra leg or extra arm?"

"Uh, an extra leg." Dom answered. "I'd be really fast."

"…I would think it would get in the way." I raised my eyebrows. "I say arm. I could do more at once and beat someone's ass easier."

"Hell yeah." He said. "Would you rather be locked in a room with a bunch of spiders or snakes?"

"Spiders." I answered quickly.

"What?" He practically yelled.

I took a gulp of wine before reciprocating. "Snakes can kill you. Spiders don't bother me at all."

"Bro, I'm terrified of spiders! They're my phobia."

"Good to know." I smirked.

"Hey, no funny business now." He warned.

"Oh, shut up." We both laughed. "Would you rather be fluent in all languages or communicate with animals?"

"Definitely communicate with animals!"

"I know! Me too! That'd be awesome!"

"Would you rather never get sick or never get tired?"

"Oh, that's a different one. Hmm…" I thought for a minute. "I'm going to have to go with never get sick because I get sick a lot plus I'm already kind of an insomniac."

"Really?" Dom asked. "What's it like?"

I sipped my wine. "It sucks."

"I can imagine." There was a brief pause. "Would you rather die from hunger or dehydration?"

"Hunger."

"Really? I feel like you'd die so much slower."

I shrugged. "You would but…I hate the feeling of being dehydrated. Hunger doesn't bother me as much as it used to." _I'm already anorexic too. Apparently._

"I'm gonna go with hunger."

I nodded. "Would you rather dance all your movements or sing everything you say?"

"Dance." Dom said. I laughed. "What? You don't think I can dance?"

"I didn't say that."

"I bet that's what you were thinking. I can dance!"

"Let's see some moves then."

He threw back his wine then stood up quickly. "Woohoo!" I cheered. He started dancing, he looked like a complete idiot. I laughed the whole time. He finally sat back down.

"What do ya think now?"

"Yeah. Great moves." I rolled my eyes and laughed.

"Well, what about you?"

I shook my head. "I am not dancing right now!"

"No, I mean…you didn't answer the question."

"Oh, right. I would sing everything I said."

"Can you sing?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty good actually. Not to brag or anything." There was a brief silence.

"Well, let's hear you sing then."

I smiled. "No. I haven't sang in a long time."

"Come on. It will be way more entertaining than this game. Plus, you made me dance so now I'm making you sing."

I let out a small laugh then looked at the floor then back at him. "You really wanna hear me sing?"

He nodded.

"…well, okay." I shrugged. I finished my wine while thinking of a song to sing. I thought of one and was about to start. I cleared my throat.

Suddenly, we heard a noise outside. We immediately stopped. "You heard that too, right?" I whispered. He nodded. I made a gesture for him to follow me. We gathered up our stuff and grabbed our weapons then went around to the back room. I looked out the window and saw a truck parked outside. "Is that one of yours?" I asked Dom. He shook his head. "Shit." I snapped. "We gotta get outta here."

We heard voices. There was more than just one person. They sounded like men. We heard them come into the house. "Go go." I said to Dom. We quietly walked down the back steps and around the side of the house. I thought we were safe. We heard a car door close and there was a man standing right there. He saw us. My eyes widened. Dom panicked, I guess, and shot him.

"No." I yell-whispered. We heard footsteps coming. "Run!" We both took off in the same direction. We hid behind another cottage. The men were outside now. They found their dead friend and were yelling stuff. I silently counted them; there were too many for us to handle alone. They piled into the truck and drove down the road.

"We gotta go." Dom said.

"Yeah, no shit." I said. "Listen, run. Okay? Just run and if we get separated, don't come looking for me. Get back to the camp. Got it?" He nodded. "Okay, go!" We both ran down the road. When we got to the bottom, we saw the truck to the left of us down the road. Dom went right and stayed on the road. I ran straight ahead into the woods. I saw the truck go in the direction Dom was headed. "Shit!" I yelled. I ran in that direction as well but stayed in the woods. I ended up down by the water. I walked across a bunch of big rocks instead of walking across the causeway. Maybe they won't see me down here. "Dom." I whispered. "Dom." I never got an answer.

I continued my way back to camp. It was getting dark now and I hadn't seen the truck the rest of the way down. I was now on the road before the camp. Hopefully, Dom made it back already. Suddenly, I heard a car behind me and my eyes widened. I spun around, it was them! I started sprinting down the road. I know they saw me. I ran into the woods and headed for the camp. _What am I doing? I can't lead them back to camp! _I scolded myself. It was too late, though. I was already outside. The truck stopped. They just sat there for a minute. I waited in anticipation to see what they were going to do. To my surprise, they drove away. I watched them drive all the way down the road. I even waited there for a while to see if they were coming back, they didn't. I hurriedly went back to camp.

Dom was there when I got inside. "Thank God." I said and we hugged. We finally let go of each other. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." He answered. "What about you? Did you run into those guys again?"

I debated on whether or not to tell him. I don't know why, but something told me not to tell him. "No." I shook my head. We were quiet for a minute.

"Look, I don't think we should tell anyone about what happened." Dom said. "Those guys will never find us. We're hidden by the trees. Let's just forget it even happened."

Something about it felt wrong but I just went along with Dom. I nodded. "Okay."

* * *

The next morning, Burke got us up early and said he wanted to call a meeting. He told me that he was going to go along with my plan. I got extremely excited. Finally! Everyone in the camp was supposed to report to the chapel. That's where they have their meetings because it's the biggest building here and everyone can fit inside. We would have just done this outside but it's raining.

Once everyone was there, Burke made his announcement. He and I were up front. "Listen, everyone," he started, "I've decided that…I want to give what Abby was talking about a try." I smiled at him then at everyone else. He continued. "There's more people out there. People that need our help. Maybe working together is the only true way for a future." He stopped. I thought I heard a strange noise outside while Burke was talking, but I just ignored it. "Abby, would you like to say anything?"

"You pretty much said it already." I said. "And you're right. There are people out there that need help and they can help us. We can expand and get things back to the way they were before all this, like I said before. We can do this and it WILL work. It's going to be hard but the more people the easier it will be. And we will have a bright future." i finished my speech. People started clapping. They actually applauded me! It made me feel pretty damn good. I spotted Dom in the crowd and he gave me a thumbs up. I smiled at him.

The applause died down. Burke and I shook hands. "You won't regret this. I know you're making the right decision."

He nodded then turned to the crowd. "So…now the work starts. Who would like to—

I heard a gunshot and Burke went down next to me. My eyes widened and I got down. People screamed and looked around in a panic. All of a sudden, there were gunshots all around me. People were screaming and trying to get out. There were men inside the building firing on everyone. _Oh my God! _I ran and slid underneath the pews. There were two dead bodies on the floor, I moved them on top of me so I was hidden and it just looked like two dead people. I was scared for my life.

I stayed like that until the gunfire and screaming died down. I heard the peoples' footsteps and knew they were leaving. I could hear things happening outside. They were shooting people in their homes that didn't come to the meeting, they were raiding the place. A tear slid down my cheek. This is really happening.

I decided that I was going to stay there until I heard nothing but silence. That idea was squashed when one of the bodies on me turned. I gasped. I was so worried about the men that I almost had forgotten about that! I stabbed it quickly in the head and threw it off me. I struggled to get up. Some of the people had already turned and noticed me. "Shit." I said out loud. I killed as many as I could. More and more were turning. I had to get out of there. Another one was coming right towards me, I was about to kill it but stopped when I realized it was Dom. I held him back and stared back at his lifeless eyes. I couldn't stop the tears that were falling. "I'm sorry." I said. Then, I put him down.

I snuck around when those people who attacked us were leaving. I watched them get into their vehicles outside the walls. My eyes widened as I saw the truck that was chasing me yesterday. I instantly felt sick to my stomach, I couldn't even swallow. It's all my fault. I thought. It's all my fault!

* * *

I walked around the whole camp trying to find survivors, there were none. They were all dead. All of them…gone.

I sat down in the middle of the street. This entire community is dead because of me. I'm the who found them, I'm the one those men were chasing, I'm the one that didn't tell anyone about them. If I never would have come here, if I never would have bothered them, then all these people would still be alive. It's all my fault.

* * *

I gathered up whatever supplies I could find, what those other people didn't take, and shoved it in my bag. I went to Dom's house, I just had to. I cried the whole time I was packing.

I was about to leave when something caught my eye. Dom's fishing gear. He taught me how to fish. I remembered that memory of us. It was only days ago but now it felt like forever. If I could just have yesterday back…but things don't work that way.

* * *

I walked around for a long time. I stopped in several houses and stores that I passed along the way. I found things. Nothing great but it was something. It was getting dark now. I would have to find a place to stay for the night. I walked around a little longer until I found a little neighborhood. I picked a house, made sure it was clear, then stayed inside.

I didn't eat, I didn't drink, I didn't do anything. I laid there thinking about this trip. How excited I was before I left and how happy I was after I found that community. We were going to trade and work together. We were going to build something. Things changed so fast. And it was my fault. It was a perfect illusion. This whole trip was a fail.

I thought about that cottage, the one I stayed at my first night and the one I almost lost my virginity in. I wanted my dad and the others to go there for a vacation. I did not feel the same way about it.

I went into the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and realized all the blood stains on my shirt. I took it off and threw it on the floor. I looked at my scars. I hated them. I also looked at how thin I still was. I didn't care this time, though. I didn't care about anything.

I think I'm ready to go home.

* * *

**Wow :O That was a tough one, huh? It's amazing how fast things can change. And by just one little mistake! What did you guys think about it? Please review and let me know! :) Also, what do you think will happen with Abby? Do you think there is more trouble along the way or do you think she will get home safe? ;) Let me know!**


	5. Feels Like Summer

The next day, I wandered around for a long time; I couldn't remember exactly where I left my car. It didn't seem like it was this far, but I could be wrong. What made it worse was that it was super cold today. I forgot about it being colder up north. It is early Springtime so I should have known. This really makes me miss the Georgia heat. It's not even as hot in Virginia as it was in Georgia. I got my extra hoodie out of my bag and put it on. Hopefully, this will warm me up a little. I just want to find this damn car so I can go home.

Just then, I saw a snowflake. _No way! _I thought. They started coming down harder and faster. I stopped to look at it, I haven't seen a lot of snow in my life. It looked so pretty. I suddenly felt emotional and tears began to form in my eyes. I wiped at them impatiently.

Suddenly, I noticed a spot in the woods just up ahead that had a bunch of branches in a pile; I could see the hubcaps through them. _Yes. _

* * *

I was almost home, and I couldn't wait to get there. It's a good thing I got up super early to leave. Well, to be honest, I actually never went to sleep. Anyway, it was barely light out when I left that house. I actually was not gone as long as I wanted to be but after everything that happened with that other community…I didn't even want to think about it. I'm just ready to get back home and back to my family. I was maybe an hour away.

As I was driving, I got a little hungry so I started digging around in my bag for something to eat. I wasn't feeling anything. "Damn, is my food really all gone?" I said out loud. Just then, my hand touched something cold. It was a glass bottle. I pulled it out and looked at it. It was a bottle of rum that I found when I stopped on my way home. I stared at it in my hand. "I shouldn't." I shook my head. "I shouldn't drink and drive." I sat it down and went back to driving. However, I kept glancing at the bottle out of the corner of my eye. I really wanted it now. I nervously bit my lip. "Oh, what the hell. You only get one life." I picked the bottled back up and took a sip. It immediately felt like my nerves were being calmed and I began to relax. "I guess another sip won't hurt." I tilted the bottle taking more of a gulp this time. I swallowed the clear liquid, grimaced, then hissed. I could feel the warmth in my stomach. I put the bottle back in its place. "Aw, it feels so good, though." I licked my lips. "Okay, maybe just one more." I lifted the bottle to my lips for the third time.

* * *

"Ugh, need to stay awake." I said. I was so tired. I looked down at the bottle of rum, it was almost gone! "Did I really drink that much? That's bad, man." I laughed. I put my head down and closed my eyes for a few seconds.

I woke up and suddenly I was on the wrong side of the road! "Oh shit!" I swerved. It's not like I could hit anyone, but I could wreck and injury myself. "Need to stay awake. Need to stay awake." I slapped myself. Maybe some music will keep me awake. I quickly plugged my iPod in and started playing a song. I sighed loudly. This should help.

The guitars got loud on the song I was listening to and woke me up. I didn't even know I fell asleep again! I quickly stopped the car and just sat there. I almost just hit a tree. I panted and tried to calm down. This is so bad right now. I'm so tired and it's not even all from the alcohol, it's from hardly getting any sleep last night. Still…I shouldn't have drank so much. What am I going to do? I know I'm going to fall asleep again. Maybe I should just pull over and sleep for a little. I thought for a minute. No. No, I'm almost home. If I just push a little bit more, then I'll be back at my house and in my nice warm bed. I nodded then took my foot off the brake.

* * *

I awoke in a daze. My face hurt. I heard growling and realized there were three walkers at my window. I looked around. I was in the woods. A tree was directly in front of me. It didn't take me long to realize what happened. I wrecked.

I slowly winded my window down and killed the walkers one by one. Then, I pushed my door open and crawled out. The car was banged up pretty bad and there was no way I was getting it back onto the road. I don't even know how I got down here. I looked at myself in the side mirror, my lip was busted and bleeding but I was okay everywhere else. That, I don't know how either. I'm one lucky chick, I know that.

Suddenly, I leaned over and vomited on the ground. I wiped my mouth on my sleeve when I was finished. I bet I looked real attractive right then. What a mess. I shook my head.

One good thing did come out of this, though, I was able to get some sleep. I felt somewhat better.

Well, I guess I'm walking the rest of the way. I got my bag and my fishing rod out the car and headed back to the road.

* * *

It was pretty dark by now so I figured my best bet was to find a place to stay the night and head home in the morning. I knew where I was at this point, there was a neighborhood just up ahead. I will stay at one of the houses.

I picked the one at the end of the street. It was kind of away from the others. I checked it out, it was clear. I quickly took care of my lip so that it wouldn't get infected then I picked a room upstairs and locked the door. I practically collapsed onto the bed. Don't worry about tomorrow, tomorrow will worry about itself. I told myself. Fuck everything else. I was asleep before I knew it.

* * *

I felt so much better the next day. I guess the alcohol did help me sleep, though, which is good because I needed it.

I hung around this house for a little, I didn't leave immediately after getting up. I figured there really wasn't a rush anymore because I was not far from home.

I checked around the house for some food. I found some stale cereal and ate a little then I drank some water. It was my last bottle. I looked down at the little bit that was left. "Fuck it." I said out loud. I drank the rest down and threw it aside. I should be good now.

Just then, I heard a noise outside. I grabbed my gun. I looked out a window but couldn't see anything. I decided to go look outside. I grabbed my bag but left the fishing rod in the house then I quietly made my way out there. I looked around brandishing my gun. I still didn't see anything. I guess maybe it was just the wind. I sighed.

Suddenly, I felt a gun at my back and immediately put my hands up dropping my bag in the process. "Whoa." I said slowly turning around. I finally saw that it was a man, glaring at me. He looked to maybe be in his fifties. "Take it easy, man. There somethin' you want?"

He didn't answer me, his expression slowly changed. He now looked surprised? "Summer." He finally said. "I've been looking everywhere for you." He smiled.

I blinked a few times in confusion and put my hands down. "Uh…no, no you have the wrong person. My name is Abby, not Summer." I let out a small laugh. The man didn't look too happy about what I just said. It made me a little uneasy, he obviously has something wrong with him. "So…I'm gonna go now." I reached down and slung my bag over my shoulder and started to walk away. I only got maybe two steps before he spoke again.

"No." He said. "Summer must come with me." I heard him cock his gun. I should have felt scared, but I didn't. I was annoyed. I sighed loudly and dropped my bag next to me, turning around. "Look, man, I'm NOT this Summer girl you're looking for, okay? Now, I've got somewhere to be and you're kind of holding me up. So, if you need something, I have food and I have water, other than that, I have nothing for you."

He looked sad, like really sad. I almost felt bad for the guy. How did someone like him even survive this long? I mean…he's obviously got some serious problems. I really just wanted to turn and leave but something stopped me. I walked a little closer to him. "You alright, man?" I said. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything, it's just that I have a family and shit back home that I need to get to. They're probably wondering where I am." He didn't say anything, just had the same expression on his face from before. "Yeah, so…I'm gonna go. I hope you find that girl you're looking for. It's tough out here. No one should be alone—

* * *

I blinked a few times before opening my eyes. I soon realized that I was looking out a car window. My head hurt something awful. I tried to touch it, but realized my hands were tied. Wait a minute…who's driving this damn car? I turned my head so fast that I almost hurt my neck. My eyes widened. It's that guy! I had forgotten about everything. I remember now, he hit me over the head with his gun. It happened so fast. I looked down, my gun and knife were gone. And I'm an idiot.

"What are you doing?" I finally found my voice. "Why'd you take me?"

"Summer must come with me." He said. "I had Fall, Winter and Spring but I was missing my Summer." He looked at me. "Your hair is too dark to be Summer, though, we will have to dye it."

I was just staring at him. "Are you insane?" I practically screamed. "Lemme go!"

"I can't. You're mine now."

"Look, bro…how many times do I have to tell you that I'm not who you think? My name is Abby!"

"Stop yelling Summer. You won't be upset once I take you to my place."

I stared at him for a minute again. He's really pissing me off. "Fuck you, man. I'm not your damn Summer."

"Hey!" He slapped the side of my face. "Don't talk like that!" I winced and put my tied up hands to my face. "I'm sorry I had to do that, but Summer doesn't talk like that. Summer is warm and welcoming and makes you feel happy all the time in the sun. Summer is the best season of them all."

I took my hands away from my face and continued to stare at the man. I think he is literally insane. I realized that he's not talking about a person, he is talking about the actual season. I looked around. The only way I'm going to get out of this is to play along. Don't upset the guy. I took a deep breath. "So," I swallowed, "you look pretty clean and…good. Where have you been holing up?"

"Below us." He finally said.

"What?"

"Under."

I blinked a few times then just shook my head. "Oh okay." I had no idea what he was talking about. "Are you alone? Do you have a group?"

He looked like he became saddened. "I had Fall then I had Winter and Spring, but they had to go." He smiled at me. "Now I have Summer."

"What happened to them?"

He was silent for a moment. "I killed them." He said nonchalantly. My eyes widened. Fuck this pretend game! "Let me go!" I started hitting him with my tied up hands.

"Hey stop!" He yelled. He was swerving all over the road. We spun out of control and hit into a tree. Just like before.

I took my chances and ran out of the car. I ran as fast as I could.

"Wait, come back, Summer!" He was running after me. Shit. Kind of hard to run with your hands tied. He was gaining on me. What the hell was this guy, a football player? I tried so hard to get away but he was coming closer and closer. I need a miracle, but we all know those kinds of things only happen in movies.

Suddenly, I was tackled to the ground. I grimaced and groaned in pain. He grabbed me and quickly flipped me over so I was facing him. He slapped me hard in the face again. "Don't do that again." He said. He started dragging me away. I was pissed.

"Don't touch me!" I yelled. I tried to yank away.

"I can't trust you." The man said. "You made me wreck the car so now we have to walk. You might run away again." He held his gun up. "Sorry, Summer." My eyes widened. I turned my head just as he hit me hard.

* * *

My head hurt even worse than before when I woke up. I realized pretty quick that I was chained to a wall. I was in a basement or something. The man from before was nowhere in sight. Wait a minute. I thought. This place looks familiar. I craned my neck while looking around. I feel like I have been here before, but I can't think. That's when I noticed a circle of light on the ground from afar. Then it hit me. This is that place I was in, when I fell down that big pipe! There was a woman chained to the wall here. Was she one of his seasons that he was talking about earlier? I didn't have any answers, I just knew that I needed to get out of there. I started looking around for a way out, something that could help me break this chain. There was nothing. Nothing in my reach, that is. I began to panic.

Just then, I heard a door open and footsteps coming down the stairs. I stiffened up and held my breath. The man stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked at me.

"Oh, Summer, you're awake. Good." He smiled. "I made you some soup." He came closer to me and sat down in front of me. I decided maybe I would try playing along again.

"T-thank you." I said. "But I can't eat it with my hands chained."

"I'll feed it to you." He smiled and lifted the spoon.

"No, really. That's okay. Just unchain me so I can eat." I forced a smile.

However, his smile faded. He dropped the spoon back in the bowl. "I can't do that. I can't risk you leaving again. I need Summer." He lifted the spoon again. "Open wide."

I cringed. As much as I didn't want this psycho feeding me, I was starving. I opened my mouth and he put the spoon in. It was really good. He continued to feed me the soup until it was gone.

"Thank you for the soup." I said. "You should let me repay the favor and make you something to eat now."

"Patrick ate already."

"Patrick? Your name's Patrick?" I asked wide-eyed. "Okay, Patrick, listen…I have a family that I need to get back to. My little sister needs me. Please, man. Let me go."

"The only family that Summer has is me. And Patrick has no family either. We're perfect for each other."

I shook my head. This isn't working. "I can help you out. I can take you back with me, you can meet my people. You'll make friends."

"No. We'll be happy here." He smiled. "But first, we need to fix some things. We need to cut and dye your hair…and you're too skinny. You need to gain about ten pounds, maybe more."

Dye my hair? Gain weight? I don't think so. This guy is even crazier than I thought. What I was trying to do wasn't working. And I grew angry. "My name is Abby." I said through gritted teeth. "My name is Abby. I'm not your Summer!" I screamed.

Patrick got an extremely angry look on his face then he suddenly slapped me hard. My lip started to bleed immediately. "What's your name now?"

I looked back at him and spit the blood from my lip in his face. "It's still Abby." He hit me again, twice this time on both sides of my face.

"What's your name?" He said roughly.

My cheeks smarted and I really wanted to rub them. I breathed. "Abby." I stated. He did it once more, but he didn't stop at two. He did it over and over again, back and forth.

"And now?"

I was on the verge of tears, my face hurt very badly. I didn't give in, though. I couldn't show him weakness. "A-abby." And more slaps. They were harder now. My head flew from side to side as he slapped and backhanded me back over and over.

"What's your name?" He yelled.

My head hung low. There was blood coming out of my mouth. I was in pain and a little out of it. _What are you doing? Just tell him your name's Summer! He's going to kill you! _ "…uh…" I tried to speak. He slapped me more times. I was crying now and I didn't care what I looked like.

"What's your name?" Patrick yelled again.

"S-Summer! I finally yelled. "My name's Summer!" I cried. "I'm Summer." I sat there sobbing and panting.

"That's more like it." He cleared his throat. Then, stood up. He looked at me for a moment then he left and went back up the stairs.

I sat there trying to calm down. He really beat the fuck out of me. My face hurt terribly and I couldn't even rub it. I have no idea how I'm going to get out of this, but I know that I'm going to. I can't give up hope. I WILL get out of here.

* * *

Patrick came back down the stairs a couple hours later. I sat there in the dark by myself all that time. I was alone with just my thoughts and a lantern. At least it wasn't completely dark.

I realized he was carrying something big. At first, I thought it was a dead body but once he got closer, I saw that it was a dead deer. He threw it down in front of me. "I got us dinner." He said. "You have to prepare it." He laid down a big knife. There was a brief pause.

"Well, how am I supposed to do that with no hands?" I said quietly.

He slowly came over to me and unlocked one hand. My eyes widened, it gave me hope. "Now, no funny business. If you run, you will be punished when I get you back here." I just nodded. "I'm still on bad terms with you how you behaved earlier."

"I-I'm sorry." I cried. "It won't happen again. I promise."

He unlocked the other hand. I was free. I rubbed my wrists where the cuffs were. I looked around, I had to wait for the right moment. Now was not that time.

"Cut it open." Patrick demanded.

I shook my head. "We're supposed to skin it first."

"Well, I want you to gut it first." He said roughly.

"It's going to make the other part harder." I argued. I should have known better.

"CUT IT OPEN NOW!" He screamed. I actually got a little scared.

"Okay." I nodded. "Okay." I shakily picked up the knife and began cutting the deer open. Then, I started pulling the guts out.

"No! Not like that!" Patrick yelled. I jumped. "Can't you do anything right?"

"I-I'm doing it the right way!" I fired back. Suddenly, Patrick grabbed the back of my head and shoved my face inside the deer! He pushed me down and moved my face around in the mess. The smell was horrific. I tried to get out, but he was too strong. I opened my mouth to scream and tasted blood.

Finally, he let me up. I backed up against the wall and stared at him while trying to get my breath. Tears were coming down my face and I couldn't stop them.

"This needs to stop!" Patrick yelled at me. "You are being very disrespectful and I'm not putting up with it." I eyed the knife on the floor. This could be my moment. "When I tell you to do something, you do it!" _Do it, Abby! Do it! _I picked the knife up and stabbed him in the leg. He groaned in pain then I ran passed him and up the stairs, out the door and then out the door of the house. I was outside now in the woods. I ran and ran. I was on the street now. I'm going to get away.

Suddenly, the man was there too running after me. _Just keep running!_ I told myself. He was gaining on me just like before. I gave it my all, I pushed and pushed as hard as I could.

I felt myself being grabbed from behind then lifted. I immediately started crying, kicking and screaming.

"No!" I yelled. "No! No!" He carried me like that all the way back to his house.

"I can't believe you did this again." Patrick scolded me. "After what I just told you." He opened the door to the basement and threw me down the stairs. I lay at the bottom in pain. "I bring you here, give you shelter, feed you and this is how you repay me? Ungrateful. Now, I have to punish you." He was out of sight for a few seconds then came back with what looked like a fire poke. My eyes widened. He was coming down the stairs towards me.

"No, please!" I yelled. "I'm sorry!"

"That's what you said before." He swung it high and brought it down hard on my side. I screamed in pain and rolled over on my stomach. He hit me again. Tears were already streaming down my deer blood covered face. He started hitting me wherever he felt like it. I curled up into a ball and covered my head. He mainly got my back and legs. It hurt so bad and I didn't think he was ever going to stop.

* * *

I sat there nice and still while Patrick cut my hair. "Shoulder length I think is good." He smiled. "Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes, Patrick." I said.

"You've been so good lately." He said. "I guess punishing you did some good."

Today is day three that I have been here. After the first night when he beat me with the fire poke, he locked me down here in darkness for a whole day with no food or water. I nearly lost my mind. Being in darkness that long is something I never want to experience again.

"It looks good." He said then held a mirror up. "What do you think?"

"I love it." I said. There was no emotion in my face what so ever.

"Great!" Patrick said with glee. "Let's dye it now. It'll look even better!"

"Can't wait." I said still looking at myself in the mirror. No trace of a smile was evident on my face. I had no laughter lines. My happiness was gone, along with my hope.

* * *

"What? What the hell?" Patrick yelled. I cringed. "This isn't the right color! You-you were supposed to be blonde! It just looks lighter brown."

"It's because my hair is so dark. You're going to have to dye it again." I said.

"I don't have anymore hair dye!" He slapped me. "Why would you do that to your hair? Why would you make it so dark?"

"I-it's my natural color." I stammered while rubbing where he just struck me.

"Lies!" He screamed in my face. I braced myself for another slap but it never came. Instead he lit a cigarette and burned me with it. I yelled out in pain. I grimaced as I could smell burning flesh.

Finally, he took it off and put it out. I touched where he just burned me. Patrick grabbed my face and forced me to look at him. "I don't like hurting you, but you make me. Stop making me." He kissed my forehead softly.

"I'm sorry."

"I know." He smiled and pushed my hair back.

* * *

I turned my head and puked on the floor. "You idiot!" Patrick yelled. "You just wasted food!"

"I told you I couldn't eat anymore." I tried to reason with him. "I'm tiny, I can't eat as much as you."

I watched him get up from the table without saying a word and grabbed the fire poke. My eyes widened and I got down on the floor. "No, please!"

I felt the first hit.

* * *

**Hey, guys! Abby really, uh, is in some trouble right now :/ Please leave a review and let me know what you think will happen! Will Abby escape this horrible man? Will one of the others come to her rescue? Or will she get through to Patrick and change him and he can join her group? Let me know what you think! :D**


	6. Anywhere But Here

Three weeks. I have been here for three weeks. I counted the days. I marked them in the dirt in the corner. And to think I thought I was going to be out of here the first day I was brought here. This man, this guy, he is evil. He is THE definition of evil. I refuse to call him by his name. I refer to him as HIM or HE. _He_ takes his anger out on me. He is the ultimate manipulator. He does things, makes mistakes, and blames them on me. The thing about it is, sometimes I do believe it is my fault. Deep down I know it isn't but maybe I was brainwashed by him. Can you be brainwashed if you know you are brainwashed? I guess it depends.

I learned things in the time I was here. I have become an expert at cooking and sewing. I had some skill before when it came to cooking but now I was a damn chef. I made a joke. I could almost laugh. Almost.

Sewing was a whole different story. I did not know a damn thing about sewing besides that fact that you have to thread the needle. I didn't even know how to do that. I thought of the memory of the first time he made me:

_He was trying to move something, a bookcase, I think it was, and it caught on his shirt and ripped it._

_"__Shit!" He yelled. I jumped. I always jump when he yells. I cringe when he gets close. He looked down at the tear and then at me with his evil, angry face. I knew I was going to get hit. He slapped me right across the face making me fall to the floor. I touched my face then looked up at him. "You see this?" He showed me the hole. "You're gonna fix this for me now!" He took his shirt off and threw it at me then left the room for a moment. I whimpered in fear that he was going to come back with the fire poke. Instead he brought a container. He dropped it next to me, the lid come open spilling the contents out. It was sewing materials. "Fix the hole." He said._

_I whimpered again because I was afraid to tell him I didn't know how. "B-but…" I trailed off._

_"__Yes?" He walked closer to me._

_"…__I-I don't know how to sew." I looked up at him, the fear was evident on my face._

_"__Figure it out!" He yelled then walked away._

_With shaky hands, I threaded the needle and taught myself to sew. _

It was difficult at first but now it's cake. I have to say, though…all this time, I wondered why didn't he just get another shirt? Clothes are one of the easier things to find these days.

I also know how to do stitches. After learning to sew, stitches just came naturally to me. I had to stitch him up the one day. I recalled that memory as well:

_He came back from a run or something. Walked right over to me, didn't say a word, just slapped me hard. Then, he showed me his hand. He had a pretty bad cut. "Let's clean that up for you." I said. I washed the old blood away then cleaned it._

_"__Ow, that burns." He shouted at me. He slapped me upside the head. I continued what I was doing. Once the wound was clean, I started the stitches. "Ow, you idiot!" He slapped me a bunch of times in the head. I was unfazed by it. _

_"__There all done." I said._

_He examined it, I waited in anticipation for his approval. Finally, he nodded. "Good job."_

_"__Thank you." I said._

You believe that? I fixed his wound and then _thanked_ him. And after he beat me. I have already accepted my fate. I knew that if I didn't get out of here, then he will eventually kill me. And I had no hope that I was going to get out of here.

* * *

"It's ready." I said. I got a bowl of soup for him and sat it in front of him at the table. Then, I did the same for myself. I sat down across from him. I noticed he didn't try his food yet. "Aren't you hungry?"

"It's a bit too hot. I'm letting it cool." He said calmly.

I nodded. I eyed the fire poke leaning up against the counter and became nervous. I was always only one word, one comment or look away from getting it. "So…did you find anything interesting on your run today?"

He nodded. "I found some barbed wire." He took it out of his bag that was next to him on the floor and sat it on the counter. "I want to start making a fence around my property. It will help to keep the dead away."

"Good idea." I said. He eyed me suspiciously. I became nervous and bit my lip. I looked down at my bowl of soup. I saw him finally lift his spoon to his mouth. He made noises like he was tasting it. I looked up at him.

"What is this?" He asked slowly.

"Beef." I answered too quickly. "I-I thought it was your favorite?"

He narrowed his eyes at me then looked back down at his soup, he was pushing everything around with his spoon. "If this is beef, then why isn't there any meat?"

I was getting more and more nervous. I swallowed hard before answering. "We were out."

He glared at me. "Idiot!" He threw his spoon at me but I dodged it and it hit the counter behind me.

"I'm not eating this without meat." He protested. "You can eat it. You're still too thin anyway. I'LL just have coffee." I immediately stood up and started making his coffee. "You didn't make some beforehand?"

"I-I'm sorry." I stammered. "It'll only be a minute."

"Idiot." He said. I poured the dark liquid into his cup and stirred in the cream. "Hurry up!" I was shaking. I sat the cup in front of him. He just stared at me. "Aren't you forgetting something?" I was confused. Then, I realized I left the spoon in his cup.

"Oh, I'm sorry." I grabbed it to put it into the sink. He smacked my back in the process. I watched him nervously take a sip. Then, he gave me a look. I felt like I was going to puke.

"Is this…dark roast?"

"…yes." It was barely audible. I bit my lip. There was a heavy silence as he stared at me. Then, he pounded his fists on the table. My eyes widened and I jumped.

"I can't let this one go." He stood up and grabbed the poke.

"No." I said quietly.

"Put your hands on the table." He demanded. He's never done that before. He always comes over to me and just starts beating me.

"No. Please." I begged close to tears.

"HANDS ON THE TABLE!"

I was too scared not to oblige. I put my hands on the table palm down, he raised the poke, I closed my eyes waiting for the pain. I screamed out immediately after it hit me. I'll never get used to that feeling. He hit me three times. I lay on the ground sobbing in pain. He was standing there shaking his head.

"You know what?" He started. "I've been thinking…" I looked up at him. "This isn't working out." He ran a hand through his hair like he was working on a stressful project at work. "I really wanted it to, Summer, but it's not. I guess I'm going to have to start looking for Fall again." He sighed and picked up his gun. My eyes widened. "I'll be humane, where do you want it?"

I immediately freaked out. He is not killing me today! I grabbed the pot off the stove and threw the hot soup on him. He screamed and rubbed his eyes. Then, I picked up the fire poke and started hitting him with it as hard and fast as I could. He was yelling in pain. He shot his gun once but missed me. I hit him in the leg and he went down. Then, I stabbed him in the stomach with the poke. I listened to his gruesome cries. Not one part of me felt bad. I couldn't get the poke out of him, but I wasn't done yet. I eyed the barbed wire on the counter and quickly unrolled some of it. I wrapped it tightly around my hands so I had a nice grip and then I proceeded to saw his head off with the wire. I didn't stop, I was in a rage. Blood sprayed everywhere and I listened to his gross sounds as he gasped for air. My hands were also bleeding from the wire. The sound of sinew ripping making me almost sick. I didn't stop until his head was on the floor.

I stood there panting. I was covered in blood. If anyone had watched this horrific scene, they would think that I was the crazy one. I looked down at his body. "It's over." I spit at him. "You're the idiot."

* * *

I gathered up all the food and supplies that this man had as fast as I could. I needed to get the hell out of here. Anywhere is better than here.

I reached for the doorknob, but froze. I haven't been outside in three weeks. I have been locked in this hell. _You can do this. _I coached myself. I nodded and took a deep breath. Slowly turning the knob, I opened the door and took a step out. I felt the air hit my face immediately, I could smell the trees. Birds few across the sky. The sky! I could see the sky! And it was beautiful. Before I knew it, I was sobbing. I broke down and fell to my knees crying. I cried for everything that happened here and how long I was here. How I was treated and how I thought I was going to die. It was all so overwhelming and it made me extremely emotional.

"I'm alive." I said out loud and cried. "I'm alive!"

* * *

I went back to that house I stayed at because I remembered that I left my fishing rod there. I get there and what do you know? My bag was still sitting right there in the front yard where I dropped it.

I went inside. I gathered up my supplies. The bag I took from that guy's house was practically filled so I took some supplies out of that one and put it into the other. I walked around the house making sure that I didn't leave anything else around. I found a teddy bear in one of the bedrooms that made me think of my sister. I grabbed it. I usually bring her back something whenever I go out on runs.

While I was in the bathroom, I looked at my reflection in the mirror. I was covered with blood. I was also covered in bruises. I should probably clean myself up a little before going home. Wouldn't want to scare anyone.

After changing my clothes and wiping myself off, I just stared at myself. I didn't look like me anymore. I still _was _me, I knew that, but I didn't look or even feel the same. I just don't feel like me. I thought sadly.

A little later, I looked at all the supplies I had. I got a good amount of stuff, mostly from that man's house. It's almost like it was supposed to happen. _"It went the way it was going to. The way it was supposed to." _I heard Tyreese's voice in my head. I quickly shook that thought. "No." I refuse to believe that this happened for that reason. I went through hell for that? No way. Not everything happens for a reason. Certainly not this. That's what I told myself…but I didn't believe me.

* * *

I stood outside the gates of Alexandria. I thought about staying at that house back there for another night, but I really wanted to get home.

A few people greeted me here and there as I made my way to my house. I gave them so much as a nod or just said a quick "hi."

I walked up the stairs to my house and opened the doors and stepped inside. "Michonne? That you?" I heard my dad's voice.

I didn't answer right away. "…it's me." My dad came from around the corner.

"Abby?" He said surprised. Then he looked really happy. "Abby, oh my gosh." He came over to me and hugged me tightly. I dropped everything in my arms. "I missed you so much." He said.

At first, I tensed up because for the passed few weeks, the only human connection I had was abuse. But then, I realized that this is my dad he would never hurt me. His touch was warm and welcoming and made me feel safe. I slowly wrapped my arms around him and hugged him back. Then, I put my face in his shoulder. I missed him so much, too.

He finally let go of me and looked at me. "You were gone for so long. I'm so glad you're back." He smiled. I tried to smile but my face just wouldn't do it.

"…uh, yeah…" I finally found my voice. "Sorry, some…stuff happened."

"That's okay. You're here now." He smiled. "You look different. Your hair's lighter?"

"Um…I-I didn't do that. Someone else did." I nodded. There was a brief pause. "Where's Michonne and Judith?"

"Michonne went to Hilltop to talk with Maggie about some rules and I just put Judith down for a nap."

"Oh." Was all I said. My dad gave me a strange look. I nervously tapped my fingers together. "I-I found a lot of supplies." I motioned to my two bags plus my fishing gear. "Weapons too."

"Good." My dad nodded. There was another pause between us but this one was longer and more awkward. I didn't know what to say, I just looked around the room. "Hey, Abby," my dad said and slightly moved me so I was looking at him, "you okay? What's 'a matter?" He clearly looked concerned.

I was nervous. _Where do I start, dad? That I was kidnapped and beaten into submission? That I drove drunk and could have killed myself? That I found another community and tried to help them but ended up getting them all killed after forming emotional ties with some of them? Or that I watched a woman get raped and murdered and didn't do a thing to help her? _I couldn't say any of this stuff, though. I just couldn't. But my dad was waiting for an answer. I looked down at my knotted fingers then back up at him. "Fuck this world."

"What did you just say?" My dad asked me.

"I said, fuck this world…and what it does to people."

My dad was giving me a strange look. He looked almost angry? I wanted to escape this awkward moment so I went upstairs to my room.

I showered immediately. I felt so gross. I cried pretty much the whole time while I was in there. I started to feel bad about what I said to my dad. He was all happy and excited to see me and I ruined it. "You idiot." I scolded myself then slapped myself in the face. My eyes widened at what I just did. _Did I really just do that? _I can't believe I just did that. That can't ever happen again. You are an idiot for what you did, though. I will have to apologize to my dad.

I took a nap after that, my dad woke me up for dinner. He didn't have to do that. I could have made dinner. I slowly made my way downstairs. "Abby!" Judy ran to me.

"Hey, kid." I yawned and picked her up. I gave her a quick hug then set her back on the floor. "We got any wine or anything?" I asked my dad.

"I made this for you." She handed me a folded piece of paper. "It's a welcome home card!" She grinned from ear to ear.

"Aw that's nice. Thanks." I set it aside without opening it. I didn't miss the look my dad gave me. "You didn't have to do this, you know? I could have made dinner."

"Well, you seemed liked you needed some rest. Feeling any better?"

"Not really but ya know?" I took a big gulp of water. My dad eyed me. He can tell there's something up with me. I just remembered that I wanted to apologize. I glanced at Judith, she was lost in her own world. "Oh, hey, dad? I'm sorry about earlier. What I said. I just…" I closed my eyes and looked down. "Bad…bad stuff happened."

"It's alright." My dad reassured me. "I just want you to be okay."

"I know." I nodded. "I am." I sighed. "I-I will be."

"You want to talk about it?"

"No." I answered too quickly. I calmed down. "I-I can't. I'm not ready."

He nodded. "I understand."

There was a brief pause. I ate some of my food. "So, how's the bridge coming along?"

"Pretty good." My dad nodded. "Almost done. I'm going back tomorrow. I took a break today to check on Judith."

"That's good. I'll come with you." I saw Judith look up at me when I said that.

"Abby, no. You don't have to. Just rest. You just got back."

"No, dad." I snapped. "I don't want to stay here and—" I glanced at my sister. She looked sad. I can't say that in front of her. "I just…I want to help. I can help you."

"Well, okay. But you really don't have to."

"I want to." I put the last of my dinner into my mouth. "I'll clean up." I said with my mouth still full.

"No, I can do it." My dad said. He stood up and came over to me at the sink.

"Dad, I can help. I'm not like…broken."

He grabbed the plate I had in my hands but I didn't let go. "I know but you just got back and you should rest up the rest of the day."

"I said, it's fine." I pulled the plate and it slipped out of our hands and fell to the floor. It broke in a million pieces. My eyes widened. I'm an idiot.

"I'll get a broom." My dad said coming closer to me. I gasped and cringed like he was going to hit. My eyes were wide. I backed up against the counter. "Hey, hey." My dad said softly. "It's okay." He put his hand on my face and looked at me in the eyes. "It's okay."

I slowed my breathing down and calmed down. I felt embarrassed and got tears in my eyes. "I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry." I cried. I moved aside and put my hands on the counter and looked down.

"Abby, it's okay." He put his hand on my back, I tensed up again. "It's alright." My dad gently rubbed my back. I finally calmed down. I was embarrassed, though, so I tried to play it cool.

"I'm fine. I'm good." I pushed my hair out of my face.

My dad nodded. "Just let me take care of this."

I sighed. "Yeah, okay."

Then, my dad sighed. "I gotta take Negan his damn dinner."

I perked up a little inside. I almost forgot about him. I hadn't seen him yet. "I'll do it."

"You sure you want to?"

"Yeah, it's no problem at all." I quickly put some food onto a plate and then took his tray out to him.

I opened the door into the jail. Negan was sitting there in the corner, he didn't notice me yet. I saw a tray of food on the floor that wasn't touched. It was old. Why didn't eat that? "Hey, it's me." I said. He looked up. "I'm back."

He didn't say anything, just started to laugh. He slowly got up and made his way closer to me. "Damn…you were gone for so long, I thought for sure you found your hubby and you two took off."

"Pfff. No. I would never do that." I sat his tray on the ground so he could pull it under the door. "I brought your dinner. I see you didn't eat your dinner from last night. Why?"

"Not in the mood to eat."

"Well, you should. If you don't eat it, it gets wasted." I stopped. Look at me sounding like that guy. "Well, I'll let you eat. I just wanted to let you know that I was back…and in one piece." I tried to smile, but again, I couldn't. I grabbed his tray from before. I can dump this food outside. I started to leave but turned back around. "Oh and…you were right about what you said about finding people. That is what we should be afraid of."

That got his attention. "What happened to you?"

I shook my head. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Did someone do something to you?" Negan pressed himself against the cell door. He actually sounded concerned. Part of me wanted to tell him, but I don't think I can talk about everything yet.

I shook my head again. "Eat your food, Negan." I walked out of the jail.

"What happened to you?" I heard him yell. I sighed loudly. Then, I headed back to the house to put the tray back.

* * *

Judith followed me out onto the porch. "Where goin'?"

"To throw this food out."

"Why?"

I rolled my eyes. "Because it's old."

"I come?"

"Sure, kid. As long as you stay inside the walls." I sighed clearly annoyed. She happily skipped along with me. She's not like this with anyone but me, especially not this talkative. I really don't know why I was annoyed, though. She never annoyed me before. I guess maybe it was her naiveness. Then again, she is only three. I just didn't feel like dealing with it.

"Did you get me something?" She asked sweetly.

I remembered about the teddy bear I found. "Yeah, I did actually. I forgot to give it to you."

"Yay!" She jumped. "Can you read to me tonight?"

"I don't know, kid." We reached the gate. "Stay here." I walked outside and scraped the food off the plate onto the ground. The only thing that's going to eat that is ants. I thought while staring at it. I looked back and Judith was gone. Panic set in immediately. "Judith? Judith, where are you?" I turned the corner and found her behind one of the cars, she was watching a butterfly. "Judith!" I yelled making her jump. "Get over here!" I yanked her by her arm. "I told you to stay inside. Don't you ever come out here again, you hear me? Not ever!" She was giving me a sad and maybe a little scared look. I felt bad and sighed. I spoke softer. "Look, there's bad stuff…out here. I just don't want you to get hurt." I hugged her. "Come on." I grabbed her hand and we walked back to the house.

* * *

I gave Judith her teddy bear once we got back home. She was running all over the house playing with it, she was being very loud. Any other time, I would find it cute but right now I had an awful headache.

I sat on the couch with my dad, he was laughing occasionally at Judith. "What time should I be up tomorrow?" I asked my dad.

"I wanna get there for six."

"Okay. I'll set my alarm."

"You sure you still don't want to stay home with Judith to—

"Yes! I'm sure." I snapped. My dad gave me a look. "Sorry. I-I just wanna help." My sister was being very loud.

"You do help. A lot."

"Yeah, well…one can always do more." I leaned back. My sister climbed up on the couch and started jumping and yelling things and talking fast. "Can you please not do that, Judy? I have a headache." I rubbed my temples. She didn't listen to me, though. She continued to jump and shout. I couldn't take it anymore. I was about to lose it. "Shut up, Judith!" I yelled. Everything stopped for a minute. Judith gave me a scared look then ran upstairs. I immediately regretted yelling at her. My dad was giving me a disbelieving look. "I'm sorry." I looked down at my hands wide-eyed. "I didn't…I didn't mean to. I lost my temper. I'm sorry."

"Tell her that." My dad said. I hope he's not mad at me. I stared at the floor. Just then, I noticed the fire poke sitting against the wall by the fireplace. I started breathing heavily and shaking. "Abby, maybe you should just get some sleep?"

I nodded. "Yeah, yeah." I stood up.

"Everything will be okay." My dad told me. I nodded and then headed up to my room.

I stared at myself in the mirror while breathing heavily. I slapped myself in the face, got scared of my dad and yelled at my baby sister. What's wrong with me?

* * *

**Hey everyone! Hope you liked the chapter! I swear I wrote this before the episode where Alpha cuts the woman's head off with the wire! That was my idea first lol Please review! :)**


	7. Constant Static

I sat up quickly in my bed breathing heavily. It was just a dream, it was about him. I sighed and tried calming myself down. _He's gone and you know it. You killed him. _I checked the time on my iPod, it was almost time for me to get up. I might as well just stay awake then. I groaned and threw my blankets off.

I stared at the picture Judith drew for me while getting ready. I put it up on my wall last night. I sure feel bad about how I treated her yesterday. I will have to make it up to her somehow. I hope she forgives me.

I went to see her before we left, she was asleep, though. I didn't want to wake her up because we still have to wait for Alice to get here so she can watch Judy while we are gone.

I yawned while walking down the stairs. My dad was in the kitchen eating. "Morning." He said to me.

"Morning."

"I made eggs. I made some extra in case you wanted some."

"Yeah, thanks." I spooned the remainder of them onto a plate and stood at the counter eating.

"I'm surprised." My dad said after some time.

I looked up at him with a mouthful of food and said, "what?"

"Just that you're eating. We usually have to force you to eat." He let out a small laugh.

"Oh yeah." I put the last of my eggs in my mouth then shrugged. "Whatever." I put my plate in the sink.

"Abby, I wasn't saying anything. I'm glad."

"Yeah." I sighed. Just then, we heard a knock at the door. "I'll get it." I trudged over to the door and opened it. It was Alice.

"Oh, hi, Abby!" She smiled brightly. "You're back. It's good to see you. How are you?"

"Yeah, hi." I said apathetically. "Judith is upstairs still sleeping." I pulled my iPod out of my pocket and checked the time. "We gotta go." I said to my dad. He gave me a weird look.

* * *

"We're walking?" I said in disgust.

"We can't spare the fuel." My dad stated. He continued walking. I followed.

"How far is it?"

"Not too bad."

"That doesn't answer my question." I rolled my eyes.

"Hey, you don't wanna go? Go ahead and go back home. I told you to stay home anyway."

"No, it's fine." I sighed. This is going to be bad day, I can feel it.

We didn't talk for a while. I'm glad it's not really warm today. It was a little chilly actually. I had on my black jacket hoodie that I cut holes in the sleeves for my thumbs. It was prefect for right now.

"What was up with that back there with Alice?" My dad finally spoke. I gave him a questioning look. "You were like, 'yeah, hi. Let's go. Like we were in a hurry."

I shrugged. "I didn't feel like talking to her." I said nonchalantly.

"Hm." He looked at me. "And Judith? Did you get to see her?"

"No. She was sleeping, didn't wanna wake her up."

There was a brief pause. "Did I hear you having a nightmare this morning? Are they back?"

I looked at my dad for a moment before answering. "Um…no, I mean…that was the first one in a long time."

My dad nodded. "Well, I hope everything's okay." I didn't know what to say to that so I just didn't reply. "Hey, what happened to the car you took?"

I bit my lip. I had forgotten about that. "I-it's gone."

"You had to leave it?"

"I, uh…I wrecked."

My dad stopped walking and gave me a concerned look. I stopped too. "You wrecked? Did you get hurt? Are you okay?"

"Dad," I rolled my eyes, "I'm obviously fine." I started walking again. My dad followed after a few seconds.

"How'd it happen?" He asked next.

There was no way I was telling him what actually happened. If I told him that I fell asleep at the wheel, he would make me go home for sure. I did not know what I could say, so…I didn't answer him. I just put my head down. He didn't push me for an answer after that.

"So…how are you feeling?"

"Fine." I shrugged.

"You want to talk about anything?"

I rolled my eyes…again. I know exactly what he's trying to do and it's not going to work. I became irritated. "Dad." I looked at him. "What's with the twenty questions?"

"I just want to make sure you're okay. You're my baby girl." He smiled.

"I'm your baby girl that's twenty years old." I almost laughed. Almost.

"Twenty-one." He corrected me.

I shook my head. "Oh yeah, that's what I meant."

We were quiet the rest of the way there. The walk actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. However, when we arrived at the camp, I wasn't feeling so great. Not because I was sick or anything but because there was so many people here. All working. It was good but something was just bothering me. I saw Laura and Arat as I was walking over and they both said hi to me. I waved, I couldn't smile.

I followed my dad into a tent. Carol was in there. She looked happy to see me. "Good to have you back. We need people." She smiled.

"Yeah." I nodded. That was all I could think to say. There was an awkward pause. "I'm gonna go outside." I said to my dad. He nodded. I walked outside of the tent and looked around.

"Is she okay?" I heard Carol ask my dad. I turned towards the opening of the tent and listened. My dad didn't say anything. They started talking about something else.

"Hey." I heard a voice say. I spun around quickly to see Daryl. He looked surprise. "Abby? Oh, I didn't even recognize you." He gave me the smallest of smiles. "You look different."

My shoulders slumped. "Yeah, it's my hair. Someone dyed it. I didn't want them to, though."

There was a brief pause. "When'd you get back?"

"Yesterday." I stated.

He nodded. "Well, glad you're back."

"Thanks." I looked down. "My dad's in the tent if you came to talk with him." I pointed.

"Oh, yeah." He walked inside.

I took a deep breath. That was awkward.

I decided to walk around and see what everyone was doing. Maybe I could just jump right in and help someone with a task. I passed Eugene on the way. "Hello." He nodded. I gave him a nod as well. I saw Rosita and Tara next.

"Hey. How are ya?" Rosita said.

"Hey." Was all I said.

"Hey, you! What's up?" Tara hugged me. I tensed up a little.

"Hi." We stood there. "Anyone need help with anything?"

"No, we're good for right now." Tara said. "I think Laura needed help."

"Oh okay." I took another deep breath. I was feeling a little lightheaded. I almost stumbled as I was searching for Laura.

I found her and Arat, they were packing some stuff. "Hey, guys."

"Oh hey, girl."

"What's up?"

"I heard you needed some help?"

"Uh, no, we're good. We're almost done but when did you get back?" Laura asked.

"Just yesterday."

"Oh okay. Are you coming back to the Sanctuary?"

Her question caught me off guard.

"Everyone's asking about you." Arat said.

"…really?"

"Oh yeah, it's all the time. You should head over, even if it's just for a day. You could see everyone."

I nodded. I looked around for a moment. "What happened to Justin?"

They both seemed to get quiet. "Someone killed him." Arat said.

I was surprised but not shocked. "You don't know who?"

She shook her head. "Your dad and the others are trying to figure it out."

I nodded. There was a brief pause, and I didn't know what else to say. "I'll see you around." I said to both of them. I ended our conversation. I started walking around again. I didn't know what I was doing but I needed to do something other than just stand there.

People were passing me by, some greeting me. It was very overwhelming being around all these people. There was too much going on. A man was trying to fix one of the radios, I could hear the constant static and it was getting to me. I stopped next to a tree to catch my breath. I was feeling very dizzy. I looked around at everyone and everything and it suddenly felt like I was spinning. I started breathing very heavily. This was a mistake. I can't do this! My panic attack was getting worse.

I saw my dad walking out of a tent talking to someone. I quickly went over to him. "Dad." I said. He noticed me and I could tell by the look on his face that he knew something was wrong. I pulled him aside so I wouldn't draw attention to myself. "I can't be here." I said shaking my head and breathing heavily.

"Why? What's wrong?" He asked alarmed.

"I just-I can't. There's too many people." I was close to tears. "I have to go."

"Okay, okay." He said. "Do you need me to come with you?"

I shook my head. "No. I'll be fine."

"Okay." He nodded. "Hey, it's okay. You're okay." He reached for me. My eyes widened and I pulled back. "Abby, it's okay." He said softly.

I felt stupid. "I know." I nodded. "I'll see you later." I said still breathing heavily. I quickly left the camp. Once I was on the road, I stopped and leaned up against a tree and cried. I couldn't hold it in anymore. I let it all out.

Once I got over myself, I began to calm down and started walking. I'm feeling better now. That was all just too much for me. I guess I had forgotten how to be around people. I'm not ready yet.

* * *

I decided to go fishing. If I can't help everyone, I can at least feed them. I went back home to get my fishing gear then I headed down to the river.

I stuck the dough balls on the hook. I was going to use what Dom used the first time we went fishing together. We had some left over dough, I guess Michonne tried to make something.

I got a bite almost immediately. I riled it in and looked at it once I had it. It was a big fucker. "Well, at least I know there's fish." I said out loud. Hopefully I catch a lot more. I need to feed a lot of people. Maybe I will only share it with our people. They kind of all are our people, though. I shrugged. I don't know. We'll see.

I was now on fish number four. I was doing pretty good, but fish number two wasn't as big as fish number one. I want to keep getting the big ones. Maybe I should try putting more dough balls on the hook.

That dough ball trick works pretty well. I caught some more. I wonder why the fish like them so much?

I felt a nice breeze and listened to the wind blowing through the trees. I'm enjoying my alone time.

Just then, I heard a groan. Annoyance surged through me. I looked over and saw a moss covered walker coming towards me. I quickly went over to it with my knife up and stabbed it. "Dumbass." I called it. "You'll scare the fish." I went back to my fishing.

* * *

It was pretty dark by the time I went back to camp. I saw people gathered by a fire talking and laughing. Once I got closer, I saw my dad, Carol, Ezekiel, Enid, Cindie, Tara, Rosita, Eugene, Laura, Arat, and two other people that I really didn't know. I guess most of the others left already. That's good because I don't have enough fish to feed everyone. I mean…I did get a lot, though.

I stepped into view. My dad looked up and noticed me. "Hey, where you been?"

"I went fishing." I held up the line with all the fish attached to it.

His eyes went wide for a second when he saw all the fish. "Wow, you did."

"Oh, look at all that fish." Tara said. "How'd you do that?"

I didn't know what to say but Carol spoke first anyway. "I'll start cleaning them."

"I'll help." Rosita got up and followed her. I watched them walk away. When I looked back, my dad was smiling at me. I tried, but it was a failed attempt.

* * *

A little later, we all sat around the fire eating the fish I caught. "Here's to Abby, our fish whisperer." Tara said. Some of the others laughed.

"I am ecstatic about this hot meal." Eugene said.

"Dude, can you ever just talk normal?" Tara asked him.

"What's goin' on?" I heard a familiar voice from behind me say. I looked up to Daryl. I wondered where he was.

"Abby, caught a shit ton of fish." Eugene said. He turned to Tara. "Is that normal enough for you?" She laughed.

"Isn't this nice?" Carol smiled at Daryl.

"You really caught all that fish? By yerself?" Daryl asked me. I looked down at the ground.

"Yup. She's showin' you up." Tara teased Daryl. A few people laughed. I was not one of them.

"Sit down and have some." I said quietly to Daryl. He hesitated. He eventually sat down, though. He cleared his throat and sat next to me on the log. Someone passed him a plate.

Everyone was having a pretty nice time as the night went on. I stayed pretty quiet the whole time. I only talked when I had to, which is so unlike me. I think the others noticed. This was a little better than before, though. However, I started to not feel so great again. Like I was going to have another panic attack. I started breathing heavily. Daryl looked at me. He must have heard me because he asked me if I was okay. I just nodded. I didn't want to draw attention to myself so I started taking short fast breaths so no one would hear me. But then, I felt lightheaded real quick. I got that feeling like I was going to pass out. Shit. I knew it was going to happen. I put my head down.

"Abby. Abby?" I opened my eyes to see Rosita, she was shaking me. "She's back."

"Are you okay?" My dad asked immediately.

I looked around at everyone staring at me. They looked concerned. I was embarrassed. That was the one thing I did not want to happen, draw attention to myself. I decided to play it cool. "Did I just pass out?" I asked no one in particular.

"Yeah, I saw it and yelled for Daryl to grab you before you hit the ground." Rosita said. I glanced at Daryl. He gave me a nod.

"Are you alright?" My dad asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I shrugged.

"Why'd you pass out?"

"…I don't know." I did know, though. It was because of the way I was breathing.

"Why don't come to the infirmary and lay down?" Enid asked me.

"I'm fine. Really."

"Just come anyway. Just to make sure you're okay. You could be dehydrated."

I hesitated. My dad nodded at me. "Okay." I finally said. I slowly stood up. I felt Daryl's hand on me helping me up. Then, I walked over to the infirmary tent with Enid and my dad.

I laid down on the cot. I have to admit, it did feel better than that log. I had this hot and cold sensation running through me.

"How are you feeling?" Enid asked.

"I'm fine. Just a little dizzy." I struggled to get my jacket off.

"Here, have some gatorade." Enid handed me a cup. "It has electrolytes in it, it'll bring you back."

"Thanks." I drank it down real quick. Siddiq had been training Enid to become a doctor. She was doing pretty well and I was proud of her. Carl would be proud of her. I was feeling better.

"You're starting to get some color back." My dad said.

"Was I pale?"

"Yeah, like a piece of paper."

I raised my eyebrows. I felt bad because in a way, I did that to myself.

"Have some more gatorade." Enid handed me another cup.

I heard someone come into the tent. I looked to see Daryl. "How she doin'?" He asked my dad who was right there.

"She's getting there."

"I'm fine." I said annoyed. I hate when people are worried about me.

"Think I'm gonna take her home." My dad said. "I'll go saddle one of the horses."

"No, don't bother." Said Daryl. "My bike's faster than a horse."

"Are you sure you can spare the fuel?" My dad asked.

"Yeah." He clapped my dad on the back.

"No." I said. "Don't waste your fuel on me, I'm not that important." I stood up for the first time since I got in there. I tried to walk passed them out of the tent but Daryl stopped me.

"Hey, you're goin' home." He said roughly. We made eye contact for a few seconds, I finally broke it and looked down. I stayed there next to him. There was a brief silence.

"I'll see you in three days." My dad told me. He gave me a quick hug. "I want you to rest up."

"Yeah, sure."

"Come on." Daryl said to me. I followed him out to his bike.

"You know, you really don't have to do this. I could just walk."

"No way. What if ya pass out again?"

"I walked here." I raised my eyebrows.

"That was before ya passed out."

"Mm." I said annoyed.

"Quit bein' difficult." He said. A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. I always liked messing with Daryl. He started his bike. "Hop on, sweetheart." I sat on the back and held on to him. That was the nicest thing that's happened since I got back.

* * *

Daryl stopped his bike outside the walls of Alexandria. I hopped off. "Thanks for the ride."

"Yeah." He started backing up his bike.

"Aren't you coming inside?"

"Nah, I should get back."

"Oh, okay." I was disappointed. "Be careful on your way back."

"I will."

I decided to mess with him a little. "Bye, Daryl." I leaned over and kissed his temple.

"Get outta here." He said with a smile. I almost laughed. I started walking towards to the gate. "Hey." Daryl called. I looked back. "Good job getting all those fish."

His compliment made me feel good inside. "Thanks." I called back. He started his bike, and I watched him until he was completely gone. I gasped just then because I realized for the first time since I don't even know when, I smiled.

* * *

The passed few days went by and I stayed home the whole time with my sister. She forgave me pretty quickly. All it took was a small apology and three cookies. I played with her everyday and read to her every night. Things were just like they were before I left on that journey. The one I never should have went on. Michonne came home on the second day. My dad came home on day three like he said he would. He told me about a run that he and Daryl were going on in the morning and he asked me to go with them. Of course I said yes.

The next day, the three of us left in a truck. I was in the middle. "So, is there a reason why you wanted me to come? Not that I didn't want to. I'm just wondering."

"Just figured it'd be good to get you out of the house for a while." My dad answered.

"Oh. Good." I said. "So, where we going again?"

"There's a girl that Daryl and I met out here a while back." My dad said. "She has weapons. Supplies. Maybe she'll even come back with us this time."

"Oh really?" I asked.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Her name's October."

* * *

**Hello everyone! Remember October from one of my other ****stories? ;) If not, you should definitely check that out! It would mean a lot to me! :) In the meantime, please leave a review and tell me what you thought of this chapter? Also, in that review, tell me what you guys thought of tonight's episode! Yikes! That was a rough one! D:**

**Also, to the guest that wrote in as "a fan," sorry it took me this long to reply but anyway...yes, I am an author. An independent author who goes by the name A.L. Marasco. I have two books, one that is my own called Flash and one that my friend and I wrote that's short scary stories and poems. Definitely check those out if you're interested. It would mean a lot to me and us :)**

**And...one more thing...I am probably not going to go into the whole whisperer storyline. Just giving everybody a heads up on that right now. Hopefully, you won't be too disappointed about that. I just don't really know where to fit my character in with that story. Also, this story is already completely written and is just twenty chapters. I figured that would be a good end for Abby. However, I have another story that involves Abby called Diamond Heart that I'm currently still writing for. So, if this story ending makes you sad, there's always Diamond Heart :D**

**Okay! I've already talked way longer than normal! Thanks for the support and hope everyone has a great week! :D**


	8. Everybody's Fool

"We have to stop." My dad said. "It's getting dark. We gotta start looking for someplace to stay the night."

"We should just go back to that garage back there." I said. "I don't think there's going to be anything for miles."

"I think we'll be alright."

"Abby's right." Daryl said quickly. "All we been seein' is trees and the highway."

My dad sighed. "If that's what you guys think is best." He made a U-turn and we started back in the direction of the garage. The immature side of me was happy that someone agreed with me, which means I said something right.

So, we arrived back at the garage and cleared it, then we locked ourselves in. We built a small fire and were now cooking beans over it. It reminded me of before we found Alexandria. "Just like old times." I said.

"Yeah." My dad said with a small laugh.

"So, how far is this place?" I said blowing the fire out on my stick.

"We should get there before noon tomorrow." My dad answered.

"Yeah, unless we run into trouble." Daryl said roughly.

"Which we probably will." I said with raised eyebrows. "You know, I gotta good question, what if we get there and this girl isn't even there anymore? Or like her house is destroyed or something?"

"Well, then this whole trip was a waste." Daryl answered roughly. I crossed my arms over my chest and raised my eyebrows.

"Quit being so negative. Both of you." My dad said. "We haven't even gotten there yet."

"I'm just saying, it could happen."

"I know but until then, hopes up." Said my dad. I heard Daryl snort. "We should all turn in." He started putting the fire out.

"Yeah, okay." I rolled over and used my bag as a pillow. I doubt I'm going to get any sleep tonight. I noticed Daryl looking at me, he looked away when he saw that I noticed him.

* * *

The next day, we packed a few things into the truck that we found at the garage. "You get anything else?" My dad asked me.

"Found some rope." I raised my eyebrows.

"Good. We can find some use for it."

"What about that crate over there?" I pointed to it. "Might be something interesting inside. It's laying on the side that opens, though."

My dad looked around, then over at Daryl. I saw what he was doing. He was busy taking care of something else. "Come on, me and you can do this." He put his hand on my back as we walked over to the crate. "Okay, on the count of three." My dad said. "Ready?" I nodded. "One…two…three." We tried lifting the crate, but it was really heavy. "One more time. One…two…three." We lifted it up a little more, but we were still struggling to hold it.

Just then, a walker came from around the corner right at my dad. He dropped his side of the crate to take care of the walker causing me to drop it as well, it landed right on my foot. I screamed in pain. Then, I lost my balance and fell backwards, which made my ankle bend and hurt even worse. I screamed again.

"Abby! Oh my God!" My dad yelled. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, baby!" I was sitting there grunting in pain. Daryl came running over and the two of them lifted the crate off of my foot. I immediately grabbed at it.

"Abby, I'm so sorry." My dad kept apologizing.

"Can you move it?" Daryl asked me.

I slowly moved my ankle in a circle and wiggled my toes. "Yeah." I breathed.

"I'm sorry, Abby."

"Yeah, I hear ya, dad." I raised my eyebrows.

"Can ya walk?" Daryl asked me.

I hesitated. "...I think." I started to stand up, Daryl helped me to my feet. I moved around a little. "Yeah, I think I'm good." I limped a little though.

Just then, we heard moans and walkers started coming from around the side of the building. We should have known. Where there's one, there's always more. They're just like ants. "We gotta go!" My dad said. I was about to try to run but Daryl lifted me like I was nothing and took me to the truck. We quickly drove away.

* * *

"I see the mailbox." Daryl said.

"Yeah." Said my dad. He pulled in down this weed covered path. "That's weird." Daryl and my dad shared a look. I have a bad feeling about this.

My dad parked the truck and the three of us got out. The house here just looked like any other farmhouse I ever saw. We quietly walked up to a door that led to a basement, I guess. The door was unlocked. My dad opened it all the way on his signal and Daryl went in first with his crossbow up. "It's clear here." He said. My dad and I went inside. We checked around down there first, then we went upstairs. There was a walker that came right me. "Whoa!" I yelled. I quickly slammed it against the wall and killed it. It looked like a female with short, black hair. My dad and Daryl came running. "It was a walker."

Daryl looked it over. His shoulders sort of slumped and his face fell. "Aw damnit." He said quietly. "It's her."

"That's the girl?" I asked. "That's October?"

"Yeah."

There was old blood from her throat. Someone must have slit it. "Someone came in here and did this?" It was more a statement than a question.

"Yeah, looks like they took a bunch 'a supplies too." Said Daryl.

I turned to my dad, he looked upset. I gave him a sympathetic look. "Sorry, dad. I know you wanted this to work and for her to be okay." I really did feel bad. I mean...I didn't know this girl but I felt bad for my dad. He just wants things to come together.

He was quiet for a minute. "…it still can. There's still some supplies left."

"Hardly." Daryl said roughly. I can tell he's upset, too. He just has a different way of showing it.

I decided to have a look around. This place was cool. It's a very good place to hide away in. I realized Daryl was next to me. "What is this place?" I asked him.

"It's underground or somethin'. Think she told us her grandfather built it."

I nodded. "Came in handy." I continued to look around for a little. We were all quiet the whole time.

"Well, the truck's really low on fuel, we'll never make it back, so I'm gonna go back to that town and see if any of those cars start." My dad said. "You two stay here."

"What?" I immediately turned to him. Daryl was looking at him as well. "You can't go by yourself. That town is closer to home than it is here." I was worried about my dad going alone. Anything can happen to anyone and it's worse when you're by yourself.

"Well, you can't go because of your foot and someone has to stay here with you." He gave me a serious look.

"I'll be fine." I started walking around on my foot. "See, I'm fine." Suddenly, I got a pain and had to grab onto the wall.

"You're not fine." My dad said shaking his head. "I'm not leaving you here by yourself."

"You stay. I'll go." Daryl suggested.

"No, it should be me. This was my idea. I got us into this."

"So, why don't you both go? I'll be fine here. I will." I turned to Daryl. "Daryl, he can't go by himself." I said it with clear concern. Daryl nodded at me.

"No. No. No." My dad said slowly. "I am going. I will be fine. You guys are staying here."

"Okay, and what if you can't find another car? What are you going to do then?" I asked him.

"Then, I'll head back home and get more fuel." He said matter of factly.

"Dad." I gave him a look.

"Abby, I will be fine."

I sighed in exasperation because I knew he wasn't going to listen to me. "You better be careful."

"I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Yeah, how soon?" Daryl asked.

He sighed. "At least three days."

"You're gone any longer, I'm comin' to look fer ya."

My dad nodded. "Thank you." He then said to Daryl. I didn't know what that was about.

I followed my dad up to the door and watched him leave out the window. I watched him until I couldn't see him anymore. _He better be okay. _I made my way back upstairs, I slowly turned to face Daryl. He looked at me then took his jacket off, slinging it over a chair, then sat down. I walked over there and sat on the couch. We were both quiet.

Daryl finally broke the silence. "Yer foot okay? Ya okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks for that back there."

"What about the other day when ya passed out? You feelin' better?"

"Yeah. Thanks for that too. Sorry that I passed out on you."

"It's a good thing ya did. I caught ya."

My mouth set into a thin line and I nodded. I didn't know what to say and started to feel a little nervous. I tapped my fingers together trying to think of something. I was looking around and spotted a door. I hadn't been back there yet. I wonder what that room is. I got up and walked over towards it. I slowly opened the door. It was a bedroom, there was also a bathroom back there. I started looking around at all the stuff that was inside, I opened drawers and the closet. It was something to do.

I found a small box that had sewing stuff in it. It brought back some bad memories and I shivered. Oh well, it could be useful. I took it with me as I left the room. I really wanted something to do…and then I found my answer. I spotted Daryl's jacket that he put over the chair, it had a hole in it. I could fix it for him. I grabbed it and the sewing kit and sat on the floor. I started immediately after threading the needle.

I could feel Daryl's eyes on me but I didn't turn to look at him. "Whatcha doin'?" He finally asked me.

I didn't answer him right away. "I'm fixing the hole in your jacket."

"You don't have to do that."

"It's fine. It's something to do." There was a short pause. I could feel his eyes on me.

"I didn't know ya knew how to sew?"

"Oh…yeah, I-I do now." I answered without looking up.

"Who taught ya?"

"Um…" I cocked an eyebrow trying to think of how to answer that question. "…I-I taught myself."

"Oh. That's cool."

I wasn't able to smile on the outside but that doesn't mean I wasn't smiling on the inside. I just finished the last one and snipped away the remaining thread with the scissors. "There." I held it up. "Good as new. Well…except for all the other damage...and stains." I teased.

"Yeah, thanks." Daryl said.

"No problem." I rubbed my hands together. "Wonder if there's any alcohol down there." I stood up and headed towards the stairs. "I'm tryin' to be an alcoholic, that sounds like a fun thing to do these days." I think I heard Daryl snicker as I walked passed him.

As I was searching around down there, I found a box that had packs of crackers in them. I reached for it and a huge cockroach crawled out. "Ew!" I dropped the box. I watched it crawl away. "That's disgusting."

I looked around some more. I saw some bottles on a shelf and my eyes lit up. "Here we go." I grabbed a bottle of whiskey for Daryl and a bottle of vodka for me then I headed back upstairs.

"Here." I sat the whiskey in front of him. I sat down on the couch.

"Nah, I cain't." Daryl said.

"Why is that?" I asked opening my bottle.

"One of us needs to keep watch."

I just stared at him for a minute. "Okay." I shrugged. I ripped the foil off the top and unscrewed the lid.

"Hey, you drankin' 'at straight?"

"Yeah." I gave him a weird look. "I do it all the time." I immediately regretted saying that. I looked back at him. "Well…not all the time."

"You better not be. It ain't good fer ya."

I took a sip then licked my lips. "Yeah, well, I don't really care about that anymore."

"Well, ya should." Daryl snapped.

I looked at him for a moment. "Why?" I tested him. And I wasn't being a smartass either, I really wanted to hear his answer. He just looked at me. He never answered that question. "That's what I thought." I took another gulp of the vodka.

Daryl cleared his throat. Was he nervous? Then he did a weird thing, he sort of shrugged then reached for the bottle of whiskey. I watched him open it and take a big gulp. Then, he set it down hard on the table. He saw me staring at him.

"What? Ya happy now?"

I gave him a weird look. "What? No. You didn't have to drink if you didn't want to. You're a big boy. You make your own decisions." I pushed my hair out of my face. "So do I and I chose to drink. We're gonna be here for a while so we might as well do something." I rubbed my forehead. "It's better than…watching people fight. Or looking after a prisoner." I looked down at the floor. When I looked back up, Daryl was giving me an apologetic look.

"How you been doin' since everythang?"

His question caught me off guard. I blinked a few times. "Um…I don't know." I looked down and away with my eyes closed and almost laughed. "When people used to ask me that before, I always just said I'm fine, I'm good. How are you? And moved on. But you know, I really don't know how to answer that question now, if we're being honest. I don't even know what that means anymore. I mean...is anyone okay?" I sighed.

Daryl stared at me for a moment. "Yeah, me either." He copied my sigh.

I hesitated. "...I-I miss Carl a lot. You and everyone else are away and…then there's what happened while I was away…" I trailed off because I wished I wouldn't have said that last part. _Idiot._

"What happened while you was away?"

My eyes glazed over. I wanted to escape this conversation. I became nervous. "…uh, I…um…I-I don't wanna talk about it." I swallowed hard and crossed my arms over my chest. I leaned back in the seat. I didn't try to hide that I was uncomfortable.

"Abby…did someone do somethin' to you?"

"…yeah, there was this guy—

"Wait, what guy?" Daryl sat up in his seat.

I breathed. "Just a sick…" I trailed off again because it was making me think of things that happened there. I shook my head. "No, just forget it. I-I don't wanna talk about it." I sat up and took a few deep breaths. I looked at the TV, there was a bunch of DVDs on a shelf. "Does this thing work?" I got up and pressed the "on" button, it came on. "Well, look at that." I started looking through the movies. "Let's put a movie on in the background while we talk."

"Sure." Daryl said.

"Let's see…no…no…no…oh my God! I cannot believe this movie is in here." I showed Daryl the movie. It was The Outsiders. "I was obsessed with this book and movie before the turn. I'm gonna have to put this on."

* * *

Daryl and I were laughing at this story I just told him. That's right, I actually laughed. And got him to. It was probably mostly the alcohol. But we were having a pretty good time.

"Do you remember the very first thing I said to you?" I asked Daryl.

"Uh…you asked me why I was wet, right?"

I nodded and laughed. "Yeah, I was a smartass kid back then."

"Ya still are a smartass, you just ain't a kid no more." He smirked at me.

"Yeah, well, so were you. Every time I tried to be your friend, you were so mean."

"Yeah, I know."

We were quiet a minute. I took a sip from the bottle. I had a thought and the alcohol must have been making me brave because I decided to tell Daryl. "So, I'll tell you a secret but you have to promise you won't laugh." I giggled.

"Alright, I promise."

I looked down with a smile because I felt nervous all of a sudden. Too late to back out, though. "So, I, uh…I used to have a crush on you."

"You had a crush on _me_?" He gave me an almost disbelieving look.

"Yeah. You know, back in the day?" I smirked.

"Huh. Well, what the hell's wrong with you?"

I let out a small laugh. "What do you mean?"

"Ya must be some kinda crazy to like someone like me."

"Don't say that. You're great…you're great." I laughed. I think I blacked out for a second.

"Yeah, I'm great." Daryl let out a small laugh. "You need to stop drankin'. It's makin' you say things that ain't true."

I became a little more serious. I didn't like that he was saying that about himself. "Oh yeah, well…what about me? I've been single all this time. No one likes _me. _There must be something wrong with me then."

"No. You're great. You're great." Daryl imitated me.

"Shut up." I said. "There's nothing good about me."

"Abby." He gave me a look.

"It's true!" I looked at him. "I'm short as shit, I look like a boy, I have bug eyes that take up most of my face and on top of all that, I'm dumb and annoying."

"You ain't…okay, you might be short but everythang else ya just said ain't true." He said roughly. "And you especially ain't dumb and annoyin'."

"Yeah, I am." I switched positions. "I tell stories and be stupid to make people laugh." I shrugged. "To try and make things better when they're clearly not. I'm just everybody's fool." I took a big gulp of my vodka that was almost gone. "Maybe that guy kidnapping me was a good thing after all."

"So, he kidnapped ya?"

_Shit. Did I really just say that?_ "Uh, yeah. That slipped out. I didn't mean to…" I trailed off. We were both quiet.

"You ain't a fool." Daryl finally said making me look at him. "You know right now today was the first time I seen you smile since before you got back?"

I looked down. "Yeah, I know. I just—

"Truth is…yer one of the most real people I know."

I looked up at him. I felt an alien feeling in my stomach. I just stared at him. Finally, I nodded. "You are, too." I loved the conversation we were having right now. However, there was one more thing I had to get off my chest. "You know, um…I feel like I should tell someone this. And we're talking about stuff right now so," I moved closer to where Daryl was sitting on the couch, "I wrecked the car I took out."

"Yer dad told me."

"Yeah, but…what he doesn't know is," I began to tear up, "I wrecked because I fell asleep while driving. I was drinking, too. But that wasn't even why, it was mostly because I was so tired. I hardly slept at all that whole time I was away."

"You fell asleep?"

"Yeah." I picked at a piece of skin on my finger. "Don't tell anyone. I just wanted someone to know. I promise it'll never happen again."

Daryl nodded. "You know how dangerous that is?"

"Yeah." I nodded. I think I blacked out again.

"And if you're drinkin' a lot, you need to stop that, too."

I paused for a moment. "Why?" I asked that same question from before and looked up at him.

"Because you're cared about."

I shook my head. "Who? My dad?"

"Everyone. Me. I care about you."

I loved hearing him say those words. "You care about me?"

"Yeah, I do. More than you know." He said softly. I looked down and smiled. Daryl was still looking at me. "And…just so you know," he put his hand on my shoulder making me look at him, "I think yer big eyes are pretty."

My eyes widened. Did I just hear that right? Was he just giving me a compliment? Or was that a hint? A real actual hint that he wanted to—My thoughts were interrupted by the TV. I heard gunshots and looked up to Dallas Winston getting shot by the police. I looked back at Daryl and smiled letting out a small laugh. Then, I became serious again. Fuck it. I'm just gonna do it. He's not going to make the first move, it has to be me. I drank the last of the vodka in that bottle, then practically slammed it down on the table. I sat up on my knees and moved as close to Daryl as I could. I wrapped my arms around his neck and started kissing him. I heard Daryl say something in the process, but I blacked out completely after that.

* * *

I woke up the next morning with a terrible headache. My stomach felt sick as well. It took me a minute to realize where I was. I must have come in here last night. I sat up slowly. _Oh my head. _I put my hand on my forehead. _How much did I drink last night? _I don't remember.

Suddenly, the sheet on me fell. I gasped and quickly pulled it back up. I was naked. Why was I naked? I never sleep naked. I find it uncomfortable.

Just then, I heard a noise like someone snored. I turned my head so fast when I looked that it hurt my head again. I gasped. Even though I knew who it was, I still looked. I immediately clapped my hand over my mouth. My eyes bugged out. If they were any wider, I swear they would pop out.

I couldn't believe it. I had sex…with Daryl Dixon!

* * *

**:O**


	9. Fall To Pieces

_Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! What do I do? _I was literally freaking out. _Do I wake him up? Do I get dressed and leave the room and just wait for him to wake up on his own? Do I make him breakfast? Maybe I should just leave. No! You can't do that, you idiot! Just calm down. _I took a deep breath, then quietly got out of bed. I cringed because I felt a little sore down there. Then, I gathered up my clothes that was littered all over the floor and got dressed.

After I was fully clothed, I turned to Daryl. I should really wake him up. The blanket was down exposing his back. I saw a bunch of scars on him. _He has scars, too? Who did that to him? _I became saddened, then I froze. _Just do it. Don't be a coward. _I took a deep breath. "Daryl?" I said gently shaking his shoulder. "Daryl, wake up."

"Huh?" He stirred in his sleep. "W-what the fuck?" He yelled and quickly pulled the sheet up over him. We made eye contact.

"Daryl, we have to talk." I said wide-eyed. He looked nervous like he didn't know what to say. "I'll-I'll let you get dressed." I put his clothes on the bed for him, then quickly left the room.

I stood there in the kitchen nervously waiting for Daryl to come out. I tapped my fingers on the counter; I'm feeling so nervous I could vomit.

Finally, I heard the door squeak and Daryl slowly emerged into the room. He stopped and we just looked at each other. Then, he cleared his throat and walked a little closer to me. We were quiet for a long time. It was I that finally broke the awkward silence.

"Daryl, I…I'm not really sure what to say to be honest." I swallowed hard. "I mean…we-we had sex." He looked at me after I said that last word. I couldn't read his expression. He still hadn't said anything. "Would you talk to me, please?"

"…there's nothin' to say." He said roughly. He seemed angry. "This is yer fault."

"What?" I gave him a weird but also shocked look.

"This was you. You seduced me."

My eyes widened. "Wait…you remember stuff?"

"Yeah, don't you?"

I shook my head. "I don't remember anything."

"If ya don't remember nothin' then how do ya know we fucked?"

I was almost surprised at his choice of words, but I was more worried about what he just said. Could he really be that stupid? "I woke up naked next to you with a sore…" I trailed off. "I-I'm just…it hurts a little." Daryl looked nervous himself. "But if you remember what happened, you have to tell me. Please!" I was desperate. "The last thing I remember is kissing you on the couch, then I blacked out."

He nodded. "Yeah, ya threw yerself at me. This was all you, you wanted to do that."

"Take that back." I snapped. "It takes two and you didn't exactly stop me. I know you're only mad because you don't know how to show other emotions but don't you dare put this on me. You're in this just as much as I am." Daryl looked a little guilty and seemed like he calmed down. I almost felt bad for him. I needed to calm down myself. I sighed. "Look…did you at least wear a condom?" He just looked at me and didn't say anything. My eyes widened. "You didn't wear a condom?" I put my hands on both sides of my head. "Oh my God. What if I get pregnant? What would my dad say?" _Oh my God! My dad! I wasn't even thinking about that. _"Oh God!" My eyes widened and I looked at Daryl. He looked the same way I did. "He can never know about this."

"Yeah, no shit." Daryl said. "I had sex with my best friend's daughter."

I shook my head. "If he finds out about this, he'll kill you."

"Yeah, and I'd let 'im."

I took a few deep breaths. I started thinking about everything, I tried thinking about the bright side. "You know…" I perked up a little. "Maybe this isn't so bad." Daryl gave me a stupid look after saying that. "No, really! I mean…my dad knows you and trusts you."

"No." Daryl said. "We ain't tellin' no one. We cain't."

I looked at him for a minute. "We don't have to but…whether we do or not, it still happened."

"Yeah, I know." Daryl sighed. There was a brief pause. "Ya know, you could 'a least told me you was...on yer period." He said roughly.

"What?" I gave him a weird look. Not only was I surprised by his statement but I was also confused. "I'm not."

"What was that blood stain on the bed then?" He gave me a weird look.

I got this feeling where I almost wanted to laugh. Surely, he couldn't be that clueless? "Daryl, I was a…" I stopped myself because of the look he was giving me. Maybe he _is_ that clueless. I wasn't even sure how to say this now. "You took my…" I trailed off again. His eyes widened a little. "That was my first time." I finally got out.

Daryl looked sick, like he was going to have a heart attack or something. "Oh my God." He said. "I took yer—you was a—oh shit." He put his hands on his face then sat down on the couch. I never saw him like that before.

"Daryl, what's wrong? It's okay."

"No, it ain't." He snapped almost making me jump. "You was a baby yesterday. Now yer…yer…"

"I'm twenty-one, Daryl. It's about time it happened." I said with raised eyebrows. "And at least my first time was good." I half joked and smirked.

He looked up at me with hair in his face. "How do you know? Thought ya said you don't 'member nothin'?"

"I just know it was." I smiled at him.

"Ya thank this is funny?"

"No. But I'm not going to freak out over it like you are." I stated. "And," I sat next to him on the couch, "maybe…maybe we should give this a try." I shrugged.

"Give what a try?"

I hesitated. _Say it! _"…us." I said. "Me and you. Together."

"And what about everyone—

"Screw everyone else." I said cutting him off. "They don't need to know. We can keep it between us. And if it works out, maybe we can even tell them one day."

Daryl was quiet. "…I don't know."

I was panicking a little inside. "You care about me, right?" He gave me a look. "You said that last night. Or was it just the alcohol?" I said with a laugh.

"…no." Daryl cleared his throat. "It wasn't just the alcohol."

"Okay. Well, I care about you, too. So, let's give it a try. What do we got to lose?"

Daryl was looking at the ground. "…alright." He finally said. "Sure."

I smiled and put my hand on his arm, which made him look up. "I hope it works out."

His eyes seemed like they widened a little, but he looked awkward like he didn't know what to say to that. He just nodded.

* * *

Daryl and I sat on the couch with each other a little later. "So, what now?" Daryl asked.

"Well, I don't know." I pushed my hair back. "I've dated a few guys before but no one serious, obviously, so, I'm kinda new at this." I breathed. "What about you with girls you've dated?"

"I ain't never dated no one." He said roughly.

I blinked. "Really? Were you a virgin, too?"

"No." He answered immediately. I could tell he was being defensive.

"It's okay, Daryl, you can tell me. _I _would never judge you."

"I wasn't a virgin." He repeated. "But…I only had sex once."

I suddenly felt an immature feeling of jealousy. "Oh. Who was she? Did she mean something to you? What happened?" I paused in between each question.

He cleared his throat. "She weren't important. She was a skank that Merle brought home for me on my eighteenth birthday. He had no idea it was my first time. I didn't even want to." He looked down.

Part of me was happy that it was just that, but another part of me felt bad for Daryl. I was quiet for a minute. "Why did you then?"

He didn't answer right away. "I was afraid…of Merle. What he'd do if I didn't. Thangs are different fer guys, 'specailly then."

I nodded. "I understand. I'm sorry about all that."

He nodded. We were both quiet.

"So, neither of us has any idea how to be in a relationship?" I said.

"Looks like it."

"Well, we're off to a great start." I laughed. Daryl let out a small laugh as well.

I looked down then back up quickly because I got an idea. "Okay." I waved. "Forget about what everyone else does. All that mushy stuff. Let's just be us. But a little closer."

Daryl shrugged. "Alright." He seemed okay with the idea.

"We could…get to know each other a little more." I blurted out. "Maybe ask each other random questions?"

"Sure." Daryl said. "No alcohol."

I laughed. "Right, no alcohol." I cleared my throat. I tried to think of something to ask him. Then, I remembered about this morning when I saw those scars on his back. I wanted to ask him about it real bad. "Actually…I have a really serious question to ask you. And you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He just looked at me. "Were you abused?" He gave me an almost surprised look. "I saw those scars on your back."

Daryl looked down and was quiet. "Yeah." He finally said.

"Did your dad do that to you?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

That made me so sad. How could any parent do that to their child? "What-what did he use?"

Daryl licked his lips before answering. "Pretty much whatever he could find. Usually a switch."

"A stick?" I asked. He nodded. I cringed inside and looked down. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. Ain't yer problem."

I looked back up at him and pushed the hair out of my face. "I have scars, too. I was in a car accident. Uh…before this. I almost died."

"Sorry." Daryl breathed. I nodded giving him a small smile. "Will you tell me what happened while you was away? Ya said you was kidnapped?"

I blinked a few times. "Yeah."

"What did he do to you?" Daryl narrowed his eyes.

I swallowed hard. "He, uh…he made me do things for him. If…he didn't like the way I did them, he'd…hurt me." I switched positions. "His favorite thing to use on me was a fire poke. He would just hit me wherever he could." I shivered.

"I saw those bruises on you."

"Yeah." I sighed. "They're so ugly. I hate them."

"He still alive?"

I thought for a minute before answering, remembering what I did to that guy. It flashed through my mind causing me to involuntarily cringe. "…no, I killed him."

"Good cuz if he was, I'd go lookin' fer 'im." There was a brief pause. "How long was you there?"

I started to tear up. "Three weeks."

His eyes widened a little. "You was only gone like a month, though."

"Yeah, I know." I put my head down. Daryl's questions were evocative. I started silently crying. I sniffled and wiped a tear away.

Suddenly, I felt Daryl's hands on my shoulders and jumped a little. I didn't even realize he moved over. "It's okay."

I nodded. I felt stupid for crying. "I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't 'a pushed ya."

"It's fine." I breathed. I wiped the remaining tears away and calmed down. "It's better to talk about things, right?"

Daryl shrugged. "I guess."

I smiled at him. We were quiet for a minute.

"I'm starvin'." Daryl said out of nowhere and stood up. "Anythang to eat around here?"

"I don't know." I said mimicking his movement. Then, I could have kicked myself. "I should have brought my fishing gear. There's that lake not far from here."

"Yeah, ya should have." Daryl said. "What's wrong with you?" He gently swatted my bottom, then walked passed me. I could feel my face flush instantly.

"Well, I didn't know we were gonna get stuck here for three days." I said. I started looking around in the kitchen cabinets for anything we could eat. "You think these noodles are still good?"

"Yeah, but what we gonna eat 'em with?"

"You never just ate plain noodles before?" I asked him. "I used to come home from work and eat them all the time because no one ever saved me any dinner. I would make some noodles and put hot sauce on them."

"You worked?"

"Yeah, I was a lifeguard." I continued looking around.

"…I didn't know that."

I smiled. "Well, ya learn something new everyday."

"Yeah." He snorted. "Let's try yer noodles and hot sauce recipe."

I laughed. "Okay." I got out a pot, filled it with water and put it on the stove. "I saw a bottle of hot sauce downstairs yesterday." I started to walk away but Daryl stopped me.

"I'll get it." He said. "You stay here." He swatted my bottom before he left. There it was again. My face flushed. It gave me a feeling "there." I realized I liked it. I smiled.

* * *

Daryl and I sat at the table and ate. I kept sneaking glances at him while he wasn't looking. He's cute when he's eating. "So, what do ya think?" I asked him. "Am I a chef?"

"Oh yeah." He raised his eyebrows and talked with his mouth full. "Yer the best."

"Thanks, I know." I grinned. We shared a quick laugh. "So, I liked what you did earlier."

"What's that?" He said about to take a sip of his water.

"That butt slap."

Daryl almost choked on his water. "Oh yeah?" He sounded amused.

"Yeah." I smiled. "You should do it more often." I put a noodle in my mouth and chewed it real slow. Suddenly, I wasn't hungry anymore. Well…for food, I mean. It made me want to ask him something. "I have a very important question. Like all jokes aside."

"Okay?"

"When are we gonna have sex again?"

Daryl looked at me and stopped chewing. "Um…" He swallowed hard. "That's up to you."

"Me? Why's it up to me?"

"Well, because—

"Oh, I see." I smiled. "You were being a gentlemen. Okay, well, I'm ready to go right now. We can do it right here on the table." I gave him a lascivious smile.

"Abby." Daryl gave me a look.

I gasped. "I have a better idea. Let's take a shower together."

"Abby."

"We can wash each other. That's sexy." I grinned.

"Abigail." Daryl raised his voice a little. "We cain't have sex again with no condoms."

My face fell. Shit. I forgot about that. "Oh yeah. Damnit." I was so disappointed. I thought for a minute. "Well…we could do other things." He didn't say anything. "We could. Come on, it'll be fun."

"I don't know."

"Please, Daryl. You said it was up to me." I gave him a sweet look to try and be funny.

"Mm…alright." I was on my feet in a second. "Should we clean up first— whoa!" I grabbed Daryl's hand and practically dragged him into the bedroom.

I started the shower to get the water nice and hot while we were getting undressed. I turned and looked at Daryl giving him a soft smile. He attempted to return it. I could tell this was very awkward for him. However, it was a dream come true for me. I pulled my shirt off and then my bra. Daryl was just staring at me.

"Oh, uh…" He began taking his shirt off. I unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans while he did that. I slid off my jeans and underwear, when I turned to look at Daryl, he was in the process of the same thing. Then, I stuck my hand under the water to see if it was hot enough. It was. I stepped inside then motioned to Daryl to do the same thing.

We just stood there. I have to admit, it was a little awkward at first because I have never done this before, but I was also very excited. "Um…" I stood on my toes and lifted my head up to kiss him. Daryl realized what I was doing and bent a little so he could reach me. Our lips connected. It was…awesome. I loved this feeling I had inside. We pulled apart, and I rested my head on his arm. "What do you wanna do?" I said all breathy.

"I-I don't know."

I felt his erection poking me and looked down. Then, looked back up at him. "Do you want me to…" I casted my eyes down for a moment.

Daryl seemed to hesitate. "…if you want to."

I smiled and gave him a quick kiss before I went down. His cock was a nice length. I couldn't believe I was looking at Daryl Dixon's penis. I was nervous, I never gave a blow job before. I have seen videos and read stories, so I'll do my best.

I started by licking the tip, I licked it just like an ice cream cone. I smiled up at him. Then, I put it in as far as it could go then back out. That wasn't so bad. I did that two more times then licked the tip again. I repeated that process several times. I felt Daryl tensing up, he had one hand on the wall. "Abby…" I looked up at him but didn't stop. "Abby, I'm gonna— before he could finish that sentence, warm, salty liquid hit the back of my throat. I swallowed immediately. Wasn't as bad I thought it would be.

I stood up and smiled at him. "How was that?"

"Was that really yer first time doin' that?" Daryl said roughly. I nodded. "Ya looked like ya really knew what you was doin'." He almost seemed angry, which made me want to laugh for some reason. I took pride in what he said to me and smiled inside. It's funny because that could be taken as a compliment or an insult, but I'm choosing to take it as a compliment.

Daryl and I washed each other's hair. I scrubbed his head a little longer because who knows when the last time he washed his hair was?

After that was all washed out, I squirted some old body wash into my hand then rubbed them together to get a lather. I started from his neck and worked my way down. I wanted to explore every part of his body. Daryl had a cute ass. For some reason, I thought it would be really hairy, but it's not. It's like as smooth as a baby's. I made myself giggle. "What's so funny?" He asked.

"Nothing." I smiled sweetly.

"Alright." He raised his eyebrows. He squirted some soap into his hand. "Com'ere." He said. "Turn around." I did what he said. He started with my neck like I did with him, he was quicker and a little rougher than I was. But I loved his hands on me. His touch was making me so horny. I was breathing heavier as he went lower.

"Oh, there's that tattoo." He said.

I smiled remembering that conversation we had so long. I almost came just from he touching my sex. "Okay." I turned back around to face him. I stood in the water letting it wash all the soap off. I threw my arms around his neck and just held him for a moment. "No one has ever been where you have." I said all whispery in his ear. "I'm all yours."

We locked eyes and it was as if time itself stopped. "Fuck it." Daryl finally said. He lifted me and practically pushed me up against the wall. Then, he slammed into me making me cry out. He was going very fast and hard. It was hurting a little to be honest.

"Ah…Daryl…easy."

He eased up a bit. "Sorry." He kissed my cheek.

That little show of affection made me feel all warm inside. This really is a dream come true.

* * *

We were sitting together on the couch watching some cheesy movie. We actually weren't paying much attention to it. I found some popcorn and made it.

I was wearing clothes of that girl who used to live here but poor Daryl had to put his dirty ones back on. He probably didn't mind, though.

"I'm sorry what I did to you in there." Daryl said.

I looked at him before answering. "I wanted you to." I put some popcorn in my mouth.

"Yeah, but I didn't mean to hurt ya."

"It's fine. You didn't."

"Well, my handprints are on you so…"

I glanced at him, he seriously looked like he felt bad about that. "Daryl, it's fine. It's not a big deal."

"It is to me." He put his head down. I gave him a small smile and climbed on top of him. "Abby, wait…" I started kissing him. We pulled apart for a second. "Abby." I continued kissing him and in the process, grabbed his hands and placed them on my breasts. "Abby, stop." Daryl pushed me off of him. I stared at him wide-eyed.

"What's wrong?"

"…I-I cain't do this. I gave it a try and…I just cain't do it."

I was dumbfounded. I didn't know what to say. "…ya did okay in _there_."

"I did what I thought you wanted me to."

My mouth gaped open. I got off of Daryl's lap and sat back on the table so I was facing him. "You're such a liar. You were the one that said we couldn't have sex without condoms and then you were like, 'fuck it,' and pretty much attacked me."

"Yeah, that was my mistake and I take responsibility fer it."

"Ha. Y-you don't make sense." I stopped to take a breath. "Daryl, what's wrong? What happened? Why are you being like this?"

He looked down, it seemed like he had something to say but didn't want to. He looked up at me without lifting his head. And then…I understood.

"Oh." My face fell. "Oh, you're not really attracted to me. It was just the alcohol last night that made you do what you did." He didn't say anything. I huffed and shook my head. "Wow, Daryl. I guess I'm just your fuck buddy then." I stood up and began walking away.

"What? No, Abby, that's not it." Daryl called after me. "Abby, come back." I ignored him though. I went into the bedroom and closed the door, then I collapsed onto the floor crying harder than I have since my brother died. I was just rejected by the love of my life. I felt actual pain in my chest and in my stomach. I couldn't breathe. I laid there on the floor sobbing uncontrollably.

This is not a dream come true, this is my worst nightmare.

* * *

**Hope all who read enjoyed this chapter. Please review and tell me what you think. Have a good week ****everyone!**


	10. Scars Of Yesterday

I locked myself in that bedroom all night. I needed to stay away from Daryl. After I got over my terrible sadness, I was pissed, and I mean pissed. I can't believe he did that to me. I mean…I waited. I waited to have sex because my virginity was important to me. I wanted to wait until I found that one special person and that person was Daryl Dixon; or so I thought. How could he do this to me? He's not getting away with this. He's going to know what he did to me and he's going to regret it.

I emerged out of the room. Daryl was sitting on the couch, he looked back at me, I quickly turned away and walked over to the kitchen. I began looking around in the cupboards for any food that was still good. I was lucky to find a few canned things. I also went through the drawers and found some utensils that could be useful. Knives and such. When Judith gets a little older, we have to start training and teaching her how to fight and kill walkers. Small knives like this will be good for her.

After sometime, I heard Daryl clear his throat. "Abby." He said. I did not respond. I had my back turned to him and I heard his footsteps walking away. "Abby, can we talk?" I still ignored him. I putzied around trying to make it look like I was doing something. "Abby?" I quickly walked passed him and down the stairs.

I looked around for food and supplies down there. I grabbed a box and filled it with items that were good to use then I brought it upstairs. I sat it on the counter. I could feel Daryl's stare, but I didn't make eye contact. "Abby, why are ya doin' this?"

"…we should start gathering up and packing things that we need to take with us." I finally spoke. "My dad will be back soon, he said three days. It's been three days."

"He said, _at least_ three days."

"Well," I cleared my throat, "we should be prepared. You never know."

"Yeah." Daryl said quietly.

We got to work after that. We gathered up everything that was important. We searched every part of that house. We even went upstairs into the actual house, there wasn't much in there that we found, just some clothes. Daryl and I hadn't talked the whole time. It was sad, but I was too mad to really care.

Later on, we were sitting around still not talking. I had found a bunch of books in that bedroom and loaded them into a bag. I was currently trying to read one, I wasn't too involved in it, but I had to do something to avoid Daryl.

It was so quiet in that room that we could hear the car pull up outside. We both got up but I beat Daryl in going upstairs to check it out. I looked out the little window of the door. I saw my dad in the car, he just parked it. I quickly made my way back downstairs to let Daryl know it was okay.

"It's him." Was all I said. I turned to go back down, but Daryl stopped me by grabbing my arm. I gave him a surprised but mad look. I pulled myself from his grip.

"You listen to me before he gets in here." Daryl said roughly. I actually gave him my attention because I was curious as to what he had to say. "I know yer probably mad at me and I deserve it, but you listen. You—you misunderstood what I was sayin' last night. I—

"You didn't SAY anything." I snapped cutting him off. "You sat there with your head down like a scared, little boy." I pointed my finger at him. "Don't try and pretend you didn't do anything wrong. Stop playing with my emotions, Daryl Dixon. You either care about me or you don't—"

"I do." He answered immediately.

I hesitated. "…what are we doing then?" I dropped my arms to my sides. "Honestly, you're so complicated, Daryl. What do you want?" I paused and looked at him. He seemed uncomfortable. I sighed and calmed down. I gently touched his face. "If you want to be with me, Daryl, I'm willing to forget about what happened yesterday." I took my hand away. "But you NEED to give me an answer. Now."

"…I-I want to…but…we cain't."

"Daryl—

"We cain't." He raised his voice a little this time. I got tears in my eyes and began shaking my head. "I'm sorry." He gave me a long, gentle kiss on my forehead. My tears were now falling down my face.

I heard a knock at the door and remembered about my dad. I ran to let him in. "Hey, everything go okay?" He asked me once I let him in. I hugged him tightly around the neck and buried my face in his shoulder. "Hey." He kind of laughed. I needed his comfort even though I couldn't tell him about anything that happened here. I quickly wiped my tears away and then pulled apart. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I breathed. "I just…missed you." I nodded.

"I missed you, too." He gave me another quick hug and kissed my forehead. I looked up from the landing and saw Daryl watching us. He looked nervous.

* * *

We didn't stick around long after that. We loaded everything into the car and then the three of us piled in, with my dad driving, Daryl in passenger and I in the back. I don't like the back seat, it makes me feel nauseous sometimes. Today, however, that feeling could be from my broken heart.

It was a very awkward ride home. The only one that really talked was my dad. Daryl and I only talked when we had to. My dad kept giving me glances in the rearview mirror. I knew he could tell something was up. I didn't have any intentions on telling him, though. If he found out, he might literally kill Daryl.

* * *

Once we got back home, my dad dropped Daryl off at the camp then he took me home. He said he would stay home for a day or two before going back to the camp himself. He said he wanted to make sure everything was okay back home.

My dad had a few people unload the car and take the supplies to the pantry. He and I walked home together.

Just before we got to the house, he stopped me. "Abby, is everything okay?" He sounded concerned, which made feel guilty. "Did something happen while I was gone?"

I wanted to tell him so bad, I tell my dad everything. And I never lie to him. In this situation, I knew I had to, though. "No, daddy." I shook my head. "Everything's fine." I forced a smile to reassure him.

He seemed hesitant. "…well, alright. If you say so." He opened the door for me and we both went inside. "Hopefully, there's some leftover dinner." He kind of laughed.

"I'm not hungry." I was way too upset to eat.

"You should eat."

"I know, but I just…I just want to take a shower and go to bed. I'm tired." I told lie number three that day. My dad was giving me a look of dissatisfaction. "I'll eat a big breakfast tomorrow, I promise."

"…alright." He finally said. He gave me a kiss. "Goodnight, baby."

"Night, daddy." I had to hold it together until I got to my room. As soon as that door closed, I let it all out. I collapsed onto the floor and cried just like last night. This is the worst feeling I ever had. And on top of everything that happened with Daryl, now I feel even worse for having to lie to my dad.

I cried in the shower that night, something that I was getting used to doing. I love Daryl so much, I have loved him for a long time. When we had sex yesterday, it was the best moment of my life. I loved every minute of it…until Daryl rejected me. It was like the carpet was pulled out from under me, and I fell on my face. Like you finally got what you always wanted and then it was taken away.

I laid on my bed. I tried so hard to calm down, but it was just too difficult. I can't do this. I can't accept it. There's no way I'm ever getting over this. I cried myself to sleep that night.

* * *

I woke up the next morning with a terrible headache. I was all stuffy and my voice sounded weird. When I looked in the mirror at myself, my eyes were still kind of red and puffy so was my upper lip. I looked like a mess. If I go downstairs like this, they will surely be able to tell that I have been crying. Maybe I can try to pull the sick act, that way I won't have to eat breakfast like I promised my dad.

However, I didn't have to play anything when I went down there. No one was home, the house was too quiet for there to be. I saw a note on the counter. It was from my dad:

_Abby, _

_Decided to go back to camp early. Michonne went to Oceanside. I took Judy to Alice's house early this morning. Be sure to pick her up in the evening. Didn't want to wake you. See you tonight or tomorrow._

_Dad_

Looks like I have the house to myself today. I tucked my dad's note into my pocket. I always keep notes when someone leaves them for me. You never know if you're going to see them again when they go out.

Well, what should I do? I don't have any specific plans. I really should go get my sister from Alice. She's not her responsibility, but she sure does watch her a lot.

I decided to wait a little to get her. Might as well enjoy the time while I have it.

I made myself a nice, hot cup of tea and sat on the porch drinking. Some fresh air will do me some good. Maybe.

As I was sitting there alone with my thoughts, I started thinking about Daryl again. I began to feel upset. _Stop. Don't do this to yourself again. You cried all night long. _As much as I tried, though, everything reminded me of Daryl.

I sighed heavily. I wish so bad that he would ride over here on his bike, we could make up then ride off into the sunset together. Things don't work like that, though. This isn't a movie, it's real life. And the reality is…nothing is ever going to happen between us. He let me know that yesterday. But…I want him so bad. Tears welled up in my eyes and I wiped them away impatiently.

I needed to talk to someone. I can't talk to my dad or even Michonne about this. I don't think I could tell _any_one. I was alone. I looked down sadly and took some deep breaths. Looking around, I had a thought. I'm not alone. There is someone and one person only that I can talk to.

* * *

I opened the door to the jail and walked in. "Hey," I said, "I brought you some breakfast. Well, I should say lunch."

Negan looked and slowly made his way closer. I sat the tray on the floor so he could slide it under. He did eventually. He looked at it then laughed.

"What?" I asked almost annoyed.

"I'm just looking at the difference between the food you give me and what your dad and Michonne gives me." He said with his Negan smile. "I can tell you made this, baby girl."

"What do you mean?" Is he insulting my food?

"You made it with care. Your dad, on the other hand, just slaps things on bread and hands it to me."

Oh. "What makes you think I care?" I was just trying to be a smartass.

"Because this sandwich is so nicely put together." He laughed and took a bite. "And so good, too." He said still chewing.

"Whatever." I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest. "Ya have a fun time while I was gone?" I teased.

"Smartass." He glared. I smirked. "Have a fun time on your run with your daddy and Daryl?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I did actually. I had a great time."

"Good…because it's never gonna happen again."

"What?" I gave him a weird look.

"This thing your dad's trying to do isn't going to work. More and more people are going to back out. The work will get left behind and everyone will be at each other's throats."

I shook my head. "You're wrong. We're building something. Everyone's coming together. And yeah, there might be a fight here and there," (my dad told me about Daryl fighting with Justin and some of the other saviors missing, including Arat) " but less and less of that will be happening. It's going to work and it's not a waste of time."

Negan just stared at me. Finally, he laughed. "You just didn't come in here to bring me lunch. You came to talk."

I blinked a few times. How could he possibly know that? He's always been good with that kind of stuff. "How-how do you know?"

"It's all your body language." He stated. I cocked an eyebrow at him. "Your feet are pointed towards me, which means you want to continue our conversation. If you wanted to leave, one or both of your feet would be pointed towards the door."

I looked down at my feet while he was talking. He's right. _Wow, he's good._ I wasn't going to tell him that, though. "What are you, a philosopher now?" I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"No." He smirked. "I'm just good at reading people."

"Well, can you tell me what this body language is?" I gave him the finger.

He laughed. "That's just you mad because you know I'm right about everything I just said." I gave him an annoyed look. I didn't want to admit it, but he was right. _Again._ "Alright, spill it." He said. "What did you come to talk about?"

I put my head down and smiled. I decided not to beat around the bush and just got right to the point. "I lost my virginity last night." I giggled. "Well, not last night. The other day."

He had an amused look on his face. "Well, well, look at you. Welcome to the club."

I gave him a weird look but still smiled. "Thanks. You're the first person I've told so you should feel honored."

"Wow, even over your dad? I am honored." He grinned his Negan grin. "So, who's the lucky guy? I'm assuming you're together now?"

My smile faded and my eyes glazed over. I didn't want to answer that question.

"Oh, I see." Negan said. "He was a player. He hit it and quit it, huh?"

"What? No." I looked at him and shook my head. "It's not like that. Er…_he's_ not like that. It's just—it didn't…it can't work out."

"Why is that?" Negan looked genuinely interested.

"Because he's—he's older than me." I blurted out.

"Oh, so, you two are afraid of daddy? For him to find out? Is that right?" He had that smile on his face.

I shook my head. "Just forget it. I've already said too much." I went to leave.

"No." Negan stopped me. "You didn't just come here to talk, you came for my advice and now I'm going to give it to you."

I turned back in his direction and gave him my attention. "Okay…so what do you have to tell me?" The fact that I actually stayed to listen to his advice really says a lot about me. How desperate I was about my current situation. I wonder what he could possibly say?

He walked as close to me as he could, putting his hands on the bars. "Forget about him. It's not worth it for you."

"What?" I raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? It might end up working out."

"No, that's the thing. You don't want it to." He said seriously. "Believe me, baby girl, it's better this way."

I was surprised at what he was saying, he was saying the opposite of what I thought he would say. I shook my head. "Why are you saying that?"

He looked down and then back up before answering me. "…because…love makes you weak."

We were quiet while I was taking in what he just told me. Love makes you weak? That might actually be the dumbest thing I have ever heard him say. Maybe not just him either. "You can't actually believe that?"

"I do. It's the cold, hard truth about this world."

"Okay…okay, what about your wife? Did she make _you_ weak?"

"Yeah, she did." He answered immediately. "That woman was an angel." He looked pained for a second. I almost felt bad for him. "She wasn't cut out for this life and I'm glad she went before she had to see it. I never would have become what I am if she were still alive."

I almost laughed out loud at what he just said. All my feelings of sorrow towards him seemed to fade away. "Oh yeah, because you're doing so great now, right?" I raised my eyebrows and taunted him.

"…I'm still alive. Aren't I?"

I stared at him for a moment and then looked down. I thought about everything he just said. Could he actually be right? I mean…he is right about a lot of things. So, is he right about this, too? I thought about my dad. How he was with my mom and then how he was when he lost her. Then, I thought about how he is with Michonne. He's definitely happy and he's definitely NOT weak. Carl, Judith and I are the reasons he's made it this far, why he fought so hard. Michonne, too. We didn't make him weak. We didn't drag him down, we lifted him up. I know this. And that's how I know that Negan is wrong. That's not true.

"You're wrong." I finally spoke. "Love doesn't make you weak. It makes you woke. It makes you alive. It helps you to keep pushing in this terrible world. When you go out and see awful things and DO awful things, it makes it okay because…you know what's at stake. What—who you're doing it for. And that you have something worth fighting for. Something to get back to and so you don't give up." I swallowed hard because I was getting choked up. "You're saying that stuff because you have no love. And it made you bitter inside. THAT'S why you are the way that you are and it's not good. And deep down…deep down you know it and you hate it." I finished my speech. Negan didn't say anything right away. He actually looked upset.

"Okay, baby girl," he finally said, "go ahead. Go after him. And after everything comes crashing at your feet, you can have him to blame. And you'll regret not listening to me."

"Everything has already crashed at my feet…several times over. It doesn't matter."

"Oh, it does. And you'll find out." He was giving me a scary look. I looked at him for a while. That was the end of our conversation. I started to walk away, I looked back at him before leaving. He is no friend of mine...especially if things do end up working between Daryl and I because that means that he was wrong about what he said. I hope that's what happens, so I can rub it in his face. But if things don't work out...will I come crawling back to him like the pathetic, desperate person that I am?

* * *

I picked Judith up and took her home after that. "Did you have a fun time?" I asked her.

"Yeah!" She said excitedly.

"What'd you do?"

"I played some games and ate lunch and colored a bit."

"You did?" I asked cheerfully. "Good, now I don't have to feed you." I picked her up and carried her up the stairs and then inside. I sniffed. "Ew, Judy." I sniffed her hair and grimaced. "You stink, little mama. When was the last time you had a bath?" She shrugged innocently. I sighed. "Let's get you a bath then. And then you're taking a nap."

"No!" She yelled.

"Yes." I gave her a stern look.

I carried her upstairs to the bathroom and started the water. Then, I began taking her clothes off. "Wow, you really do stink. Poor Alice." I said. Judith crossed her arms in front of her chest angrily. It made me laugh.

I put her in the bath water when it was ready and got her hair wet. "Will you come in with me?" She asked me.

"No, sweetheart, I already took a shower."

"You stinky!" She pointed at me and giggled.

"No, you're stinky." I imitated her.

"You're the stinky one." She kept giggling.

"No…you're the stinky one!" I tickled her. She laughed loudly. I laughed, too. I squirted some soap in the water so she could take a bubble bath.

"Will you please get in with me?" She asked sadly.

"Why do you want to get in there so bad?"

She shrugged. "We have fun." She smiled.

I thought for a minute. "Well…okay, but just for a little. And if you start goofing around and splashing me, I'm getting out." I quickly got undressed and got in the warm water. I sat behind her so I could wash her hair. She already started splashing around in the water. "Judith, what did I tell you?" She didn't answer me. She sat still while I washed the shampoo out of her hair and began soaping up her body. She started splashing again. "Maybe you need a timeout?" I asked her sternly.

"No." She became serious. I had to smirk. "I sorry."

"Okay, good girl." I said. "Stand up." She stood up so I could finish washing her. I felt motherly with Judith because she is so much younger than me. It made me think about having kids someday. I never really thought about having kids, especially in this world and after what happened to my mom. But maybe now that we're living in a safer environment, it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe Daryl and I could have a baby. I smiled at that thought. Then, I remembered and shook _that_ thought. That's not going to happen.

Judith turned around and looked at me. "What are those?" She pointed at my chest.

"Those are called breasts." I stated.

"Aren't they called boobies?" She giggled.

I was surprised. "How'd you know that? Where'd you hear that word?" I laughed. She giggled childishly. "You're bad." I teased her.

"How come I don't have 'dem?" She looked down at her own chest.

"You do. They're just smaller."

"Why?"

"Well, uh…because…when you're a little girl, you have little boobies and when you're a big girl, you'll have big boobies." I just thought of an age appropriate answer.

"Okay." She giggled.

I let out a small laugh and shook my head. "Alright, I'm gettin' out." I got out of the tub and wrapped a towel around myself. "I'm gonna get dressed and get you some clean clothes." I said while picking our clothes up off the floor. "You can play in the water until I get back, okay Judy?"

"Okay." She said without looking up. She was playing with her bath toys. I smiled before leaving the room.

* * *

I sighed after laying down on my bed. That little girl sure is a handful. It took me forever to get her to fall asleep. I knew I didn't have very long until she was up. I did have some time, though. And, of course, I spent it thinking. I was alone with my thoughts again. All I had on my mind was Daryl. I was crying again without even realizing it.

I finally gave in and let myself cry. I laid on the bed sobbing. "God, I can't do this." I said out loud. "I love him." I sniffled. "I l-love him so much. I don't know what to do. Please, help me, God." I cried so hard.

Suddenly, I heard a noise to the left of me and looked. Judith was standing there staring at me, she had a sad look on her face. "Hey, Judy." I tried to pull myself together real quick. I wiped my tears away. "You okay?"

She nodded. She stood there for a few seconds then walked over to me. "Abby sad?"

I sniffled. I decided not to lie to her, she already saw me crying and probably heard me, too. I nodded. "Yeah, sweetheart, Abby sad." Judith climbed up on the bed, then to my surprise, she hugged me tightly. "Oh." I let out a small laugh.

"It's okay, big sister. I make you feel better."

I smiled. So, I wasn't alone this whole time after all, I had my sister. She might only be four, but that doesn't matter. Whoever said, your sister is always there for you, was right. "Yeah, you do make me feel better." I kissed her head.

* * *

**Hello everyone! Hope you are enjoying! Please review!**


	11. Hello, My Name Is Distance

Weeks had gone by and everything was the same; I avoided everyone as much as I could. When I had to be around people, I faked a smile and pretended like everything was okay. When really I was crying myself to sleep every night. I didn't tell anyone about this. I really couldn't. At first, I was doing things, helping out a lot but just about a week ago, I caught a stomach bug or something. I wasn't really feeling up to doing anything. So, because of that, I mainly stayed home and looked after my sister, which was awful because I was alone with my thoughts. All I thought about was Daryl. I couldn't seem to get him out of my mind, even after all these weeks. I hadn't seen him since that day either. I was starting to think that this heartache was never going to go away.

I was sitting alone in my room the one night when my dad walked in.

"Hey, you feeling any better?" He asked me. I just shook my head. I didn't make direct eye contact because I was crying earlier and my eyes were probably still red. "Well, don't worry. You'll feel better in a few days." He tried to reassure me. "Now, I need to talk to you about something," he walked over and sat down on the bed. I pulled my feet up and sat up trying to give him my attention. I was nervous, though. "I need you to be completely honest with me. Don't lie to me because I know something is going on with you." I gave him a weird look. "Judith told me you cry every night."

_Of course she did. _I thought annoyed. I felt irritated because I knew I was caught and there was no getting out of this.

"And we've also noticed how distant you have been lately." My dad was hesitant. "And I found all those empty liquor bottles in your closet." He looked at me seriously. I gave him a surprised look. Why was he snooping around in my stuff? I was about to ask him but he cut me off. "I was looking for something, I was not going through your stuff." He put his hands up in defense. "But the point is…I found them. So…what's going on, Abigail?" There was clear concern in his voice.

I was quiet for a moment. I was dumbfounded and really didn't know what I should say to that. I mean…I was pretty much caught red-handed. I cleared my throat before I spoke. "I…I haven't drank recently. Those are from a while ago."

"But they're still all yours?"

"…yeah." I said quietly. He was looking at me waiting for an explanation. "I've just been sad and lonely."

"Why?"

I was about to give him some bullshit answer, but then I stopped myself and thought about it. I was tired of keeping it a secret. Maybe I will feel better if I talk to someone. I really wanted my dad to know. I sighed heavily and sat up even more so I could look at him more directly, I sat cross-legged. "Here's the thing," I started, "I'm going to tell you something only because I want you to know. BUT…I don't wanna talk about it, mainly because…I'm not really sure how I feel about it myself. Okay?"

"Okay." My dad said quietly.

"So…I guess I'm just going to say it." I felt nervous all of a sudden. I cleared my throat and took a deep breath. "I lost my virginity the other day. A while back actually."

"Oh." My dad had a weird look on his face. "Okay, well…"

"I said, I don't wanna talk about it." I reminded him.

"No, I know." He nodded. "Just…that's why you've been so upset?"

I nodded. "That and…things aren't working out too great between us." I looked away because I could feel the tears coming, but I had to try and keep them in.

"Oh." He gave me sympathetic look. "Well, I'm sorry you're going through this, baby." He put a hand on my shoulder. "I know you said you don't want to talk about it, but…you know you can whenever you're ready. You can always talk to Michonne, too, if you don't want to talk to me."

"Yeah, I know." I nodded. "Thanks." I looked down for a minute and nervously played with my fingers. "I just wanted you to know because…I asked you that one time if you wanted me to tell you, ya know, when it happened."

"Yeah, I'm glad you did." He smiled. "I just hope everything is okay?"

I hesitated. "…I guess we'll find out." I shrugged.

He nodded again and was silent for a minute. "Can I just ask one question?" I nodded in approval. "Who…who was it?"

My eyes widened for a split second. _There's no way I can tell him. _I looked down guiltily and shook my head. "You don't…you don't know him." Once again, I felt bad for having to lie.

"Okay." He said. He looked around a little. "I just wanted to know so I know who's neck I have to break." He looked back at me and smiled. I gave him a small smile, too. Then, he laughed. "Come here." He opened his arms. I moved closer and leaned into him, I just let him hold me. There was something nice about being in your daddy's arms. He kissed my temple. "You know, I could knock him around a little? Maybe it'll knock some sense into him."

"Dad." I said with a laugh.

"Sorry, sweetie, I just don't like anyone that makes my baby cry."

I gave him a small smile for reassurance. "I'll be okay."

And that was lie number…well, I lost count by now.

* * *

I woke up the next morning about to puke, I almost didn't make it to the toilet. I must have eaten something bad and got food poisoning, maybe some of that food we brought back from that house was bad. I shivered.

I finished getting ready and made my way downstairs. The smell of food cooking made me even sicker.

"Good morning." Michonne greeted me.

"Yeah, right." I said sickly. I sat down and put my head down onto the counter.

"Still not feeling good, huh?" She asked me.

"I feel worse than I did three days ago. It comes and goes. I don't think I'm getting any better."

"Maybe you should try eating something?" My dad said. "When was the last time you ate?"

"No." I shook my head. My stomach hurt just from the thought of food. "I haven't been able to keep anything down at all." I got a little worried just then because what if it is from all the alcohol I have been drinking? What if I really hurt myself?

"If it's that serious, honey, then maybe you should go see Siddiq?" Michonne said to me.

The thought of going to the doctors always freaked me out. "Uh…no. I should be good. It's probably just food poisoning."

"Well, whether it is or not, I still want you to get checked out." She gave me that serious look.

I glanced at my dad, he shrugged. I sighed. "Okay, fine." I said annoyed. "If it will make you guys feel better, I'll go."

"Thank you." Michonne said. "Until then, you should probably stay away from Judy. We don't know if what you have is contagious or not."

"Yeah, okay." I said.

A little later, I walked down to the infirmary to see Siddiq. I decided to peek in the window before knocking on the door, and it's a good thing I did because he was with another patient, so I headed back home.

I was feeling so tired for some reason, that walk down there really wiped me out. I went back inside my house. My dad and Michonne were right where I left them. They both looked up when they heard me come in.

"Back already?" My dad said.

"What happened?" Asked Michonne.

"He was with someone else so I left." I said flatly.

"Oh." She said. "Well…wait a little then go back."

"Yeah, I will." I said with a yawn. "I'm just gonna lay down for a little." I laid down on the couch.

"You just woke up not long ago." My dad said.

"Yeah, I know…but I'm tired." I curled up and made myself comfortable. It's crazy how tired I felt.

"Gosh, I hope she's alright." I heard my dad say to Michonne before I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"I haven't been able to hold anything down at all." I told Siddiq. "I've just been feeling so crappy lately."

"Mm." He wrote something down. "Have you had any other symptoms?"

"Um, well, I've been really tired." I tried to think of anything else. "And…I should probably mention that I was drinking a lot."

"How often?"

"Um…maybe like a bottle of liquor a day." I bit my lip nervously because I know how bad that sounded.

"Oh my." He blinked. "That's not good for you, young lady."

"I know. I've stopped."

"When was the last time you drank?"

"Um…maybe like a month ago? Something like that."

"Oh, well, if it's been that long, I don't think that would be your problem." He cleared his throat. "Let's run a few tests to make sure." He nodded.

I felt nervous. "Yeah." I nodded and swallowed hard. "Okay."

* * *

Siddiq ran a bunch of tests on me. He took blood, he tested me for Crone's Disease, stomach ulcers, he asked me tons of questions to try and roll other things out. He mentioned so many things. IBS, food poisoning, the flu.

But he couldn't find anything wrong with me…

"I just don't know." He looked at his clipboard and shook his head. "I hate to leave you without any answers but…"

"It's all good, man." I said hopping off of the table. "It's probably just food poisoning like I said."

"It could be but…I just don't know." Suddenly, Siddiq's head shot up like he got an idea. "Hey, are your periods normal?"

"Uh…" His question caught me off guard. "No…but they never really are. I sometimes skip a month or two then it's pretty bad when I finally get it. I have endometriosis."

"I'm so stupid." He said. "Why didn't I ask you before?" He had a hand on his head and was looking at his notes. I cocked an eyebrow. I didn't know if he was talking to me or himself so I just didn't reply to that. "Are you sexually active, Abigail?"

My face flushed. "I, uh…don't know how to answer that question."

"Have you had unprotected sex recently?"

"…yeah, but it was over a month ago." I let out a little laugh. "If you think I'm pregnant, you can think again because I'm not." I laughed that off. What a joke?

"We should still check, though." He wrote something down. "Have you been urinating frequently?"

I thought about his question. I got up about six times through the night to use the bathroom last night. "Yeah, I guess."

"Uh huh." He wrote that down. "And what about your breasts? Do they feel swollen or tender?"

I absentmindedly put my hands on my breasts while taking in what he just asked me. "…now that you mention it, yes, they have." I said nervously.

"Anything else, headaches, mood swings, constipation?"

"Well, I've been feeling _kind of _emotional lately, and I have headaches…but I always get headaches." I pointed out.

"Uh huh." He nodded. "Let's do a pregnancy test."

"Alright, but I'm telling you, it's a waste of time." I laughed.

"Well, better to check." He said opening a drawer. He got one of those little cups. "Bathroom's down the hall." He pointed.

"Thanks." I said awkwardly. I headed in there. I took a deep breath and leaned over the sink. I looked at myself in the mirror and something made me giggle. "Pregnant?" I said out loud. "There's no way." I laughed it off.

I finished my business then took the cup back out to Siddiq. "Okay." He said opening a box. He took out a pregnancy test then stuck the end of it in the cup of my urine.

"So…how long does that take?" I asked.

"Just a few minutes." He stated. I nodded then tapped my fingers together nervously. I don't remember feeling this nervous at the doctor's before. Siddiq noticed so I let out a small, awkward laugh. "How are you feeling right now?"

"Fine. Just really nervous."

"Well, don't be. Whatever happens, it will all workout."

_Wow, great advice. _"Thanks." I said clearly not thrilled. "This is the longest two minutes of my life."

He let out a laugh. "I've heard that plenty of times."

"I bet." I raised my eyebrows. Just then, I had a feeling and my nervousness faded. _There's no way I'm pregnant._ I absentmindedly shook my head and smiled at the floor. _There's just no way._

Siddiq finally picked the test up and looked at it. "Well…"

"See, I told you, man. I'm not pregnant." I laughed.

"Actually, you are, in fact, pregnant."

I suddenly felt that feeling when someone jumps out at you and scares you. It faded quickly. "Come on, man. Quit playin'. I don't have time for this." I kind of laughed. He showed me the stick. There was a little plus sign on it.

All of a sudden, it felt like I was punched in the stomach and I couldn't breathe. My eyes were wide. "I-is…is this…for-for real?"

"Yes, it is." Siddiq smiled. "We have to start you on some prenatal vitamins." He sat a bottle of pills on the table. "We need to bump up your folic acid intake from 400 to 600. And since you have endometriosis, I would like to see you for regular check-ups. Just to be safe."

I stared at the floor the whole time he was talking. I was in pure shock. My eyes moved around back and forth in their sockets. _This can't be happening to me right now. What am I going to do? I can't be pregnant right now! _I started feeling like I was going to puke. Siddiq was saying some other stuff, but I wasn't listening.

"Abby?" He said. "Abby, are you alright?"

I didn't answer him right away. I still hadn't gotten over the shock. I finally looked up at him. "No." I said. I hopped down off of the table. I slowly walked over to him, grabbed the bottle of pills and slowly walked out of the door.

I walked down the street breathing heavily. I never thought in a million years that that would be what's wrong with me. _I can't have a baby right now! I'm not ready for this! And how will Daryl react? How will EVERYONE react? I can't even tell anyone who the father of my baby is!_

I grabbed my bottom lip while I was trying to think. I stepped inside my house and slowly closed the door. I just stood there.

"Hey, what'd the doctor say?" My dad asked. I didn't realize he was right there. I gasped and quickly hid the pills behind my back. "Are you alright?"

"Uh, yeah, uh…I-I was right. It-it was just a nasty, old stomach bug." I laughed nervously while slowly walking towards the stairs. "He just—he just told me to get some rest and stick to liquids." I bet my face is red.

My dad was giving me a weird look. "Okay." He finally said and nodded.

We just stared at each other. "…so…I'm gonna go upstairs now." I said. I continued to walk backwards until I got to the stairs, then I ran up them.

I slammed my door once I got up there. I'm going to have a panic attack! I can't breathe! _What am going to do? I can't take care of a baby! I can't even take care of myself! Seriously! How am I going to do this! _I breathed heavily. I felt that sick feeling in my stomach and ran into the bathroom. I puked into the sink. I looked at it sickly then washed it away.

Glancing up, I looked at myself in the mirror. _You're pregnant. _I said to myself. _Like, you're really pregnant. _I got a different kind of feeling in my stomach, I put my hand on it. _I'm responsible for this life that's growing inside of me. I'm a mom now. _I breathed out. I took slow deep breaths. _You can do this, Abby. You know you can. _I looked back down at my stomach. _I won't let anything happen to you, I promise. _I smiled.

* * *

I walked out of the bathroom and was about to leave the room, but I spotted the prenatal vitamins that I threw on the bed. I opened the bottle and took one, then I hid it in my drawer.

I walked back down the stairs, my dad was putting his boots and jacket on. He looked up when he heard me. "Hey, I thought you'd be resting?"

"I'm fine." I breathed and shook my head. "Hey, dad? Do you know where Daryl might be?"

He looked a little surprised. "Well, I imagine he's back at camp." He looked at me. "Why?"

"I, uh…need—want to talk to him. I have to ask him something…kind of important."

He stopped and looked at me. "Well, what is it? Maybe I can help you."

I hesitated. "…uh, no…I really wanna talk to Daryl."

My dad just looked at me. "Okay." He finally said. "Well, I'm headed there now if you want to come along with me?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I do. Just let me grab my gear."

* * *

My dad and I arrived at the camp a little later. My dad and I split up, he went off to take care of a few things and left me to find Daryl. I searched around for a long time. I asked some people here and there. Every time I did, though, someone said something different than the other. It was pointless asking anyone. I just continued looking for him on my own.

I finally found him sitting alone in the woods. "Hey, stranger." I said. "You sure are hard to find."

He turned and looked behind him, once he realized it was me, he quickly stood up. "Hey, you." We hugged and he lifted me off of the ground. "How ya been? I heard you was sick?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I waved his question off. "What about you? Long time, no see, huh?"

"It's been a while." He nodded.

"You miss me?" I half-teased.

"Course."

I smiled. "Not as much as I missed you." He gave me a sad attempt for a smile. We were quiet as we just looked at each other. I reminded myself of why I was here then my smile faded. I became serious and shook my head. "Actually, there's something I need to tell you. Can we go someplace and talk?"

"Well…I gotta get back to work. Can it wait til later?"

I shook my head. "No. No, it's really important. We need to talk now."

He had a weird look on his face. "Alright."

I headed down to the river, Daryl followed. We needed to go someplace where no one could hear us.

* * *

Daryl stood there with his back to me, he was looking at the ground. I was nervous because he hadn't said anything yet. "So," he turned back around to face me, "so, this is for real? You're really pregnant?" I nodded. He was quiet for a minute then looked angry. "Well, that's just fuckin' great." He raised his voice.

"Daryl." I tried.

"How long have you known?"

"…just found out today."

"And yer sure it's mine?"

I was a little insulted by his question. "Of course it's yours. You're the only one I had sex with. You know that."

He glared at me for a minute before speaking again. "Okay? And what do you plan to do about it?"

I blinked a few times. "W-what do you mean? It's my baby. _Our_ baby. I plan to raise it."

"Man, how are you going to raise a kid?" He spat. "You cain't take care 'a yerself! Yer drunk half the time! It's gonna be born all…deformed."

I was shocked at what he just said to me. It really hurt my feelings. Tears pricked my eyes. "I quit. I haven't had anything in over a month and I certainly don't have any intentions to start again now that I'm carrying a life."

"And what about me?" He snapped. "That's gonna be one fucked up kid."

"Stop it!" I yelled at him. I was close to tears. What he was saying was really hurting me.

"You don't care about what people will say about ya? Cuz there's no way in hell yer tellin' 'em it's mine. That kid ain't even gonna know who their daddy is!"

"I'm not afraid of that. I don't care about what anyone thinks. I want my baby."

He snorted. "Yeah, YOU can have it." He said roughly.

"Look, Daryl, I know you're only saying this stuff because you're scared but—

"You don't know shit!" He screamed at me. I jumped. "You're just a…a-a dumb and annoyin' little girl."

My eyes widened and I gave him a disbelieving look. I can't believe he just said that. I didn't hide the fact that I was hurt. I moved my hand over my mouth and my eyes glazed over. I stood there for a long time. No one in my life has ever hurt me more than he did right now. I guess that's it then. He doesn't want to be part of our baby's life.

I took a look at him. He had a strange look on his face that I couldn't read. Maybe he regretted what he said? I didn't know, but I turned and walked away. Slowly. And I didn't look back. I cried all the way home.


	12. Meet Me In The Middle

I walked around Alexandria with my hood up; for some reason, I felt like I couldn't look at people in the eyes. I zipped my hoodie up farther and wrapped my arms around myself. I was feeling so alone. It has been three days since I told Daryl about me being pregnant. He hurt me so bad that day. It was even worse than the feeling from before when he rejected me. And I thought that was the worst feeling in the world. I guess it's just being hurt by the one you love the most. That's what really hurts.

Anyway, this is the first day that I have been outside or even left my room. I locked myself in as soon as I got home that day. I cried all night and day, I didn't even get up to eat. I have to start doing that, though. I need to remember that it's not just about me now. I'm responsible for another life. So, whether Daryl wants to be a part of that life or not, I don't have a choice. I put my hand on my stomach and smiled down. "I made a promise to you and I'm going to keep it."

I went inside and joined my dad and Michonne for breakfast. They were up early because my dad was going back to work at the camp. They both looked surprised to see me. "What?" Was all I said.

My dad just shook his head. "Want some breakfast?" I nodded. He handed me a plate with some eggs.

"I wish we had bacon." I mumbled then started eating.

My dad chuckled. "So, how you feeling?"

I shrugged. "Better, I guess." I put a forkful of eggs in my mouth. "I haven't been throwing up lately."

"That's good. I'm glad." My dad smiled.

There was a long silence where no one said anything. I just continued to eat my breakfast slowly. "Rick, I think we should tell her." Michonne said.

"Tell me what?" I asked without looking up from my food.

"Well," my dad started, "Michonne and I were thinking about…having a baby."

My eyes widened and my head shot up to look at them. _A baby? They know something. _I shook that thought. _They don't know. _

"Abby?" My dad questioned. "What do you think?"

I realized then that I hadn't said anything. "Uh…well…I think…" Suddenly, I felt that sick feeling in my stomach. I put my hand on my stomach in pain. Then, it felt like I was going to vomit. I gasped and put my hand over my mouth and ran into the bathroom.

I barely made it to the toilet. _Well, there goes all the food I just ate. _I thought while wiping my mouth. I looked over and saw that my dad and Michonne followed me to the bathroom. I hurriedly threw the tissue into the toilet and flushed it.

"I guess you're _not_ feeling better?" My dad said. It was more of a statement than a question. He started walking over to me. He knelt down next to me and rubbed my back. "Unless our baby news just made you sick?" He joked. He let out a small laugh. I would have laughed, too, if I wasn't in this situation right now.

"She's not sick." Michonne said. "She's pregnant." My head immediately turned in her direction. As did my dad's. My eyes were wide. "Isn't that right?" I looked horrified down at the ground. My dad looked at me.

"Abby?" He questioned. I felt like I couldn't breathe. I got up quickly and ran to my room. I think that pretty much answered their question.

* * *

I was curled up in my bed. I didn't cry, I just laid there. So, now four people know. It won't be long until the others know, and then everyone. Oddly enough, it gave me a feeling of relief. The hardest person to tell, besides Daryl, was my dad and he knows now so…

There was a knock at the door. "Yeah?" I said. The door opened and my dad stood there.

"Hey." He said.

"Hey." I repositioned myself. "I thought you would have left by now?"

He nodded. "There's more important thangs." We just stared at each other. He walked more into the room. He sighed. "Abby, I need to hear it from you." He paused. "Are you pregnant?"

I felt nervous and my eyes glazed over. "I found out that day I went to see Siddiq."

My dad had a weird look on his face. "Baby," he walked over to me and sat down on the bed," why didn't you just tell me?"

"I was scared." I started to tear up.

"Scared of what? How I would react?" He turned more towards me. "Why would you be scared of that? Have I ever given you a reason to be scared to tell me something?" He sounded a bit angry to be honest. It was making me feel even worse.

"Daddy, I'm sorry, okay?" I just gave in and let the tears fall. "I wasn't scared of you, I'm just scared." I sobbed and wiped at my tears. "I don't know how to do this. And I'm alone because the father doesn't even want anything to do with this." I put my hands on my stomach. I cried very hard.

"Shh shh." My dad held me and rubbed my arm. Neither one of us spoke for a minute. "You're not alone." He finally said. "You're not. You have me and Michonne and Carol and Maggie. Hell, even Daryl." My dad said with a laugh. I cried a little harder at the mention of Daryl. _If he only knew! _"And you have everybody here. You know they'll help you. Even Judith."

I looked up at him with a stupid look on my face. "Dad, Judith is four years old."

"Well, yeah, she is now but when she gets older, she can help you just like you helped me take care of her."

I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. "But…but what about what happened with mom? What if that happens to me?"

"Don't think like that. Don't do that to yourself right now." He shook his head.

"What do you mean, don't do that to myself?" I raised my voice a little. "What if it does?" I started to cry all over again. "I'm scared, daddy." He just looked at me. I could tell he didn't know what to say to that. I stood up and sat on his lap. That's something I haven't done since I was…maybe thirteen? I buried my face in his shoulder and cried. "What am I going to do? He doesn't want to be a dad."

"You'll be fine." My dad held me tightly and kind of rocked me. "I'll always be here for you. I'm not going anywhere."

I looked up at him. "You promise?"

"I promise." He said. I wiped at my tears and leaned my head back on his shoulder. I just let him hold me some more. I needed this. He kissed my forehead. "So…are you gonna tell me who it was now? I can straighten him up real easy."

I let out a small laugh. "No, you'll scare him away even more."

"Yeah, you're probably right." He smiled. I smiled back.

* * *

A few more weeks had gone by…and things were…okay? My dad and Michonne were very nice with me. And some of the others had found out. Everyone was being nice to me and telling me to relax for a bit. Like whenever I tried to do something like keep watch, someone always offered to take my job for me. And the other day, I was carrying some supplies from the pantry to my house and DJ stopped me and carried the box for me. So, yeah, everyone was really nice. However, they were being nice without treating me any differently. I was afraid of getting strange looks or people avoiding me, but no one was like that. I was thankful because it made things a lot easier for me.

Carol came by to see me the other day and see how I was feeling. I thought it was really nice of her. Plus, I like seeing her. I hardly see anyone anymore. With my history of health, Siddiq wanted me to take it easy and stay close where he was in case something happened. So, I haven't been going out at all. I've been cooped up in my house most of the time.

I told Negan shortly after my dad and Michonne found out. I remembered the look on his face. It made me smile thinking about it. It might sound weird, but I could tell that he was happy for me. Even though, he didn't approve. So, in a way, even Negan was stepping up. And because of that...I can honestly say that I am truly disappointed in Daryl.

So, everything was going pretty well like I said. I haven't been upset or anything either. Nothing unusual ever happened. Until…this happened today:

I was sitting at the table with Michonne and my dad like I had been doing everyday. One of them always makes me a nice, healthy meal. I offer sometimes but they always tell me no.

"How are you feeling, today?" Michonne asked me sitting a plate of pancakes in front of me. _Mmm…I love breakfast for dinner._

"I want two pounds of bacon, a jar of pickles, a whole cake and a jar of peanut butter all to myself." I said cutting into my pancakes. My dad and Michonne laughed pretty hard at that.

"I can get you the pickles and peanut butter but I don't know about the other two things." My dad said. "I'm heading down to the pantry right now. Anything else you want?" He let out a small laugh.

"No but…you know that Milky Way that you had in the freezer?" I asked my dad. He nodded. "You should probably get another one of those." I laughed.

His mouth gaped opened but he still smiled. "You ate my Milky Way?" He asked in disbelief.

"I'm sorry, I had to." I smiled sweetly at him. He shook his head. "Well, actually, there was only half of it in there."

"Who ate the other half?"

"I did." Michonne admitted. My dad gave her a shocked look. "You left it in there too long." She shrugged.

My dad then looked at Judith. "You believe this?"

"I want Milky Way, too." She said innocently. We laughed.

"You want a Milky Way, too, sweetheart?" My dad asked her.

"I want two." She held two fingers up. We laughed some more. It was one of those better days.

My dad headed towards the door, I heard him open it. "Oh, hey." He said to someone. He sounded surprised, which made me curious, so I had to look. I almost dropped my fork. It was Daryl. He was looking passed my dad and right at me.

"Hey." He said. "I, uh…came to see Abby." He came inside and slowly walked over to me. He was holding a garbage bag, there was clearly something inside. We hadn't said anything to each other yet. "Can we—" he cleared his throat. "Can we talk?" He said even quieter than before. I didn't miss the curious looks that my dad and Michonne were giving us.

"Uh, sure." I said standing up. I looked at my dad and Michonne nervously. My dad finally like shrugged and walked out the door. Michonne started to head over that way, too. I waited until they were both outside. "We can go up to my room." I said quietly and pointed. He nodded. I started up there and he followed. I was so curious to know what he wanted. I hadn't seen him in weeks and he just shows up at my house?

We went inside my room, I let Daryl in front of me then I closed the door. He was just standing there looking around. I realized just then that Daryl has never been in my room before. I was just staring at him. He finally looked at me. He looked nervous. "So, how ya been?"

"Good." I nodded. "Great, actually. My dad and Michonne have been really supportive. They've really helped me out." I said it on purpose that way because _he_ is the one that should be there.

He nodded. "And the baby?"

"The baby's fine." I said walking over to my bed. "You care?" I said immaturely.

He glared at me. "Of course I do."

"Yeah, I know." I shook my head. "I'm sorry." I really was. "It's just…what are you doing here? If you've come to hurt me some more, you can just go because I cannot take anymore of it." I suddenly felt emotional and wiped a stray tear away.

"I know. I came to apologize fer how I acted and…what I said to you." He looked like he really felt bad.

"You really hurt me, you know?" I said seriously.

"I know."

"No, you don't know." I said quickly. "You treated me like a child." I paused. He was about to say something but I cut him off. "No, you got to say what you wanted the other day, now I'm going to say what I want to say and you're going to listen to me." That shut him up. I cleared my throat and took a step closer to him. "I may have only been sixteen when we first met, but I'm an adult. And now I'm a mother. And I'm going to be a great mother no matter what you think." I took a breath. "So, if you don't want to be a part of your son or daughter's life then tell me now because I can do this on my own. I'd rather us do it together but if that can't happen, then I can do it." I nodded. "I didn't think I could at first but I've grown up since then. I'm strong and…" I looked down at my stomach and put a hand on it, then looked back up at Daryl. "And my kid will be, too." I finished. There was a pause while we just looked at each other.

"…yer right." He finally said. "About everythang ya just said. And I want…I want to be…" He trailed off. My eyes widened. Is he really going to say what I think? "I want to be a part of their life." He got out. "But I'm worried about how the others will take it."

"They don't have to know." I said. "They never have to know if that's what you want."

"And how the hell are we gonna do that?" He said roughly.

"It'll be hard." I said flatly. "But we can do it. I know we can. It WILL work."

He still looked nervous but he eventually nodded. "Yeah. Let's give it a try."

I was so happy to hear him say that that I couldn't even put it into words. I walked closer to him and kissed him, then I hugged him tightly. He wrapped his arms around me. Oh, how I missed his touch. I rubbed him up by his neck and shoulders.

Suddenly, I felt his hands going lower and he grabbed my bottom. My eyes shot open. I felt him give it a squeeze. I immediately felt it "there." _Is he _trying_ to make me horny? He knows I like that. _Anymore of that and I'm going to have to push him down on the bed and take charge. I'm pretty sure my dad and Michonne are downstairs, though. My face flushed at the thought of us getting caught, but another part thought it was sexy as fuck.

Just then, Daryl gave my butt a light pat. _That's it! _I starting kissing him hard. He lifted me and carried me over to the bed. He laid me down gently while we were still kissing. I quickly undid his jeans and he practically ripped off my shirt. Then, I had a horrified thought and remembered about my dad. "Wait." I pulled away. "My dad and Michonne's downstairs."

Daryl stopped and looked nervous. I immediately regretted saying that. I wanted—no needed this. "It'll be okay." I tried to reassure him.

Daryl seemed hesitant. "…no…we cain't with them."

"Yes, we can." I nodded. "The door's locked. No one can come in and even so, we will be able to hear someone coming."

He still looked reluctant. He shook his head.

"Daryl, please." I practically begged. "I need this. I need you. Please. Please. Please." I was close to tears. I pulled him closer and we started kissing again. I pulled his jeans the rest of the way down and then he stepped out of them. He was about to crawl on top of me but I stopped him. "No, let me." I said. I kind of pushed him down. I got off the bed for a second to take the rest of my clothes off. Daryl was giving me a curious look. Then, I climbed on top of him. "I wanna ride you." I smiled lasciviously at him. I eased myself down onto his huge erection, I cringed a little as it went inside me. Finally, I smiled and began to move. "Hold onto me." I told him. He had his hands on my hips helping me, then he moved them down to my ass. I love when he touches me there for some reason. I let out a moan.

"Shh. We have to be quiet." Daryl said. I nodded. I grabbed his hands and moved them up to my breasts. I continued to ride him, with his help holding onto me, I moved faster. This is the best feeling in the world.

Without meaning to, I let out another moan, this one louder than the last one. "Abigail." Daryl said through gritted teeth. "You have to be quiet."

"I'm sorry." I breathed. "I can't help it." Another moan escaped. Suddenly, I felt Daryl slap my ass, it was harder than his usual playful swats. And that was it for me. I let go. I climaxed around him, my legs were shaking and my eyes rolled to the back of my head. I have had multiple orgasms before when I've masturbated but nothing like that. I lay limp. Daryl finished shortly after and came inside me then slowly lifted me off him and laid me next to him. He got up, but I grabbed his arm. "Where are you going?"

He gave me a weird look. It was obvious he was going to leave but I didn't want him to.

"No, stay here with me. Please." I pulled him back down. He laid next to me, I put my arm around him and laid my head on his chest. He readjusted himself so he was more comfortable, then he put his arm around me as well. It felt so nice. Daryl was so warm. I grabbed his hand, I was rubbing it with my thumb when I felt something rough. I looked at it. His knuckles were bruised and cut up. "What happened?"

"From workin' on the bridge."

I gave him a sad look. _My poor baby. _I kissed each one, then held his hand to my face. "I love you." Then, I gasped inside because I realize I spoke my thoughts out loud. I looked at him wide-eyed. He looked at me and then kind of nodded. "…do-do you…love me, too?"

"…yeah, I do." He gave me sad attempt for a smile.

"Really?"

"Yes." He breathed.

I smiled at him. That was the best thing someone has ever said to me. But then, I suddenly had a thought. "Show me then." He gave me curious look. I sat up so I could face him better. "I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow morning. You should come. It would mean a lot to me."

He gave me an almost annoyed look. I knew why.

"No one has to know, Daryl." I stated. "Not even the doctor. He probably knows we're friends."

"Yeah, and don't ya thank he'd find it a little strange?"

"I don't care if he does." I said it and I meant it. Daryl sighed and stood up. "Look, will you please just do it? You said you would try. _That_ is trying."

He looked reluctant. "Fine."

I smiled. "Really? You'll come?"

"If it means that much to ya, then yeah, I'll go." He said. I grinned from ear to ear. I hugged Daryl tightly around his neck and kissed him all over his face. "Alright, get away from me." He said. I laughed.

"You can spend the night here." I smiled.

"What? How? Yer dad knows I'm here. He never seen me leave."

My face fell and I immediately became disappointed. "Oh yeah." I looked down sadly. Then, I thought of a great plan. "Well, pretend like you're leaving and then come back." I smiled.

"Are ya crazy?" He gave me a stupid look.

"No. It'll be fun." I grabbed his hands. He snorted. "Come on, please." I smiled sweetly. I knew he couldn't say no to me.

He sighed and I knew he gave in. "Fine."

I smiled at him. Then, I looked over at the door. I spotted Daryl's bag. "Oh yeah, what's in the bag?"

"Oh, I forgot to give this to ya." He opened it and handed me a huge stuffed animal pig. I smiled at him.

"You got me a gift?"

He shrugged. "I saw it when I was out one day and 'membered ya said ya liked pigs."

I smiled. "I do like piggies." I hugged it. "They're my favorite. Thank you."

He gave me a quick smile. I absentmindedly looked towards the door again and realized it wasn't locked this whole time. I gasped inside and my face flushed. I cannot tell Daryl that. We got so lucky.

* * *

I had Daryl wait in my doorway while I checked to make sure no one was around. I tiptoed down the hall and then looked over the banister. The coast was clear. I turned to Daryl and gave him a thumbs up. He quickly but quietly walked towards me. I caught him before he walked down the stairs. I quickly kissed him. "Make sure you come back." I whispered. He nodded. I could tell he was anxious. I let him go and he left hurriedly. I watched him walk outside the door. Then, I couldn't see him anymore. I missed him already.

I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen to get a glass of water. I took a sip. "Hey, did Daryl leave?" My dad asked me. I almost dropped the glass of water I was holding. I didn't even know he was there. "Sorry." He said realizing he startled me.

"It-it's okay." I said and laughed nervously. "Where'd you come from?"

"I was just upstairs."

"Oh. I didn't even hear you come down."

There was an awkward silence.

"Daryl still here?"

"Uh…no." I shook my head. "He left a while ago."

He nodded. "Where were you guys?"

"Um…first we were downstairs then we were in here." I lied.

"…what did he want?"

"…he just—he just came by to apologize." I shook my head. "We had a bit of an argument the other day and…I don't know I guess he felt bad about it."

"Oh." My dad looked interested. "What was the argument about?"

I sighed. _Really, dad? _"Um…well— I looked over and saw Daryl in the window. I gasped inside. I moved around so my dad was facing away from the window. "He told me about everything that's been happening with the saviors. He still doesn't trust them."

"And…you told him _to _trust them?"

"I-I well, I just told him I agreed with everything that you're trying to do." I smiled at my dad.

My dad stared at for about a minute, then he finally nodded. "Alright. Well, I'm goin' to bed. I gotta get up early to head to camp."

"Okay." I nodded. "Night, daddy." I gave him a kiss. "Is…Michonne in bed, too?"

"Yeah, she's up there already. I put Judith down an hour ago."

I nodded. "Okay." I smiled. My plan is going to work.

"You're probably goin' to bed too, right?"

"Yeah, I'll be up in a minute. I just want to drink some water first. I didn't have a lot today."

"Alright." He nodded.

I watched my dad go upstairs and waited for at least ten minutes before letting Daryl back inside.

"Damn, I thought ya wasn't ever comin'." Daryl said.

"I was talking to my dad and then I had to make sure no one saw or heard anything." I whispered. "Come on, hurry." I grabbed his hand and we quickly but quietly went back up to my room. I was sure to lock the door this time.

* * *

**Hey! Hey! Hey! Please give me review if you're reading this! :D**


	13. Angel Down

"What was you and yer dad talkin' about down there?" Daryl asked me once the door was shut.

"Oh." I turned to him. "He was grilling me about why you were here." I rolled my eyes and laughed.

"And what did ya tell 'im?" He narrowed his eyes at me. I don't know why? _Does he really think I told my dad about us? _

"That you came to apologize after an argument we had." I shrugged. "It's not a complete lie." I smirked.

His mouth pressed into a thin line and he nodded. "So…what now?"

"I don't know. I kinda wanted to take a shower before bed." I looked at him and smiled. "Take one with me?"

"Nah." He shook his head.

"Why not? Oh, or we could take a bath? That'd be nice." I stepped closer to him and grabbed the ends of his vest.

Daryl looked like he was thinking for a minute then shook his head. "No. We cain't. We're gonna end up fuckin' and yer too loud, missy." He pointed his finger at me and narrowed his eyes.

"Well, not if we have the shower on. They won't be able to hear." I suddenly felt a little disappointed. "I'd rather take a bath with you, though. We haven't done that yet." I didn't hide my disappointment either. He looked reluctant. "Please." I smiled sweetly. He won't say no.

"Fine." He said roughly then shook his head. "You, ya know?"

"I know." I smiled innocently. "It's because you're the best. Now, get those pants off. Now." I looked directly at him then headed into the bathroom.

"Yes, ma'am." He said. I smiled but he couldn't see it.

I pulled my hair up because I didn't want to wash it right now. I started the water and waited for it to get hot before letting the tub fill. Once it was started, I began taking off my clothes. I looked over and Daryl was doing the same thing. He was turned the other way so it gave me a nice view of his butt. I smiled. He has a cute ass.

I snuck up behind him and grabbed it. He almost jumped and turned to face me. I giggled. "Sorry, I just couldn't resist. I think I have a butt fetish."

"Oh yeah? Com'er." He said through gritted teeth. He grabbed me and gave me a bunch of rapid, playful swats on my bottom. I giggled. I escaped him and threw my arms around his neck, kissing him softly.

I pulled away. "Wait. The water's ready." I said all breathy. I slowly got in and sat down. My body submerged in the warm water felt so good. Daryl stepped in and sat down on the other side. I slowly scooted over to him and leaned into him, he wrapped his arms around me from behind. This was even better. I leaned my head back onto his chest and closed my eyes. I could stay like this forever.

I reached for the bottle of body wash and squirted some into my hand. I rubbed them together to get a lather then I turned to face Daryl. However, I stopped when I saw his face. He looked really tired. _My poor baby. Maybe we won't fuck again tonight. Or…_I_ could just fuck _him._ Hehehe. _I slowly soaped him up starting with his neck and going down. I was a little quicker than the first time I washed him back at the house we stayed at. My man needs to sleep, especially since we have to get up early for my doctor's appointment.

I saw him reach for the soap so I stopped him. "It's okay. You don't have to."

He gave me a weird look. "Why not?"

I hesitated. "…you look really tired." I pushed his hair out of his face and shook my head. "Have you not been sleeping?"

"I'm fine." He said immediately and turned his head.

I gave him a disappointed look. "Daryl, it's okay. You don't have to lie to me."

He looked kind of uncomfortable. "We don't sleep."

I paused for a moment taking in what he just said. He's right. I knew all about that. I nodded. "I know." I sighed. "I know." I said again.

He sat up a little and then continued to soap me up like he started. "Stand up so I can wash that booty." He said. I smiled at him and stood like he said. I tried to take a few steps forwards so my ass wasn't right in his face but he stopped. "Where ya goin'?"

"I don't want it in your face." I said.

"I do." He grabbed me and pulled me back making me giggle. I bent forward a little while he washed me. His hand went lower, then in between my legs. I started breathing heavily and had to hold onto the side of the tub.

"Ah, Daryl." I breathed. _I can't take much more. _I felt his hands on my waist pulling me back down, he moved me and pulled me closer so I was on his lap. I was facing him. I put my hand on his cheek. "We don't have to. We can just go to bed, if you want?"

He shook his head. "This'll make me sleep better."

I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck bringing us closer. He began planting kisses down my neck. I like this rare side of Daryl where he shows affection like this. It felt so good. I breathed and moved a little so I could ease myself down onto him. I cringed a little in the process.

"Remember to be quiet." Daryl whispered then kissed my forehead.

I smiled and nodded. I was going to take full charge so Daryl didn't have to do much work. I began to move, slowly at first then got faster. I loved riding him. I wanted to make this fast, though, because my baby needs to sleep. I moved his hands to my breasts and I continued what I was doing. "Say something. Talk dirty." I said to him.

"What?"

I breathed. "Tell me you're gonna spank me if I don't cum soon."

"…uh…I'm gonna…spank ya…if you don't cum soon."

I stopped and looked at him. "No." I said out of breath. I gently smacked his arm. "Come on, Daryl. Play with me. Sound more stern. Get angry." I started moving again. "Come on, you're a tough guy." I gave him a sideways smile. "That's what I'm going to start calling you. Tough guy."

He narrowed his eyes at me, then cleared his throat. I almost laughed. "You best cum soon, young lady, or I'm gonna spank yer ass so hard ya won't ever sit again."

"Yes." I breathed.

"Move yer—move yer ass faster or I'm gonna fuck ya into next week." He said roughly.

"Daryl." I said surprised but still flirty. "Yes. Keep going."

"No, you keep goin'." He raised his voice a little. "Ya wanna go over my knee, little girl? Cuz that's where yer about to go."

That was it. I looked up at the ceiling with wide-eyes as I climaxed. My legs began to shake. I had to hold on to Daryl tighter. I leaned forward on him and leaned on his shoulder still breathing heavily. I kissed his shoulder. "You're the best."

"I bet ya say that to everyone." He teased and lifted me off of him. I was still sitting in front of him.

"You are my everyone." I leaned my head onto him and put my arms around him.

He kissed me between my eyes causing me to smile. "Let's go to bed, darlin'." Daryl said sounding a bit tired. I nodded slowly then lifted his hand to my mouth so I could kiss it.

* * *

Daryl and I dried each other off. "You wanna sleep naked?" I asked him once we were dry enough. "I've never done that before."

"Nah, we'll end up fuckin' again." He said.

"Oh yeah. You're right." I put on a pair of underwear and threw on a t-shirt. Daryl only had his boxers on.

I climbed into bed first then Daryl got in next to me. He shut the lamp off, then we got comfortable with he wrapping his arms around me. "You know, I could be the big spoon for once." I said.

"Sometimes I have no idea what the hell yer sayin'."

I giggled. "When two people are cuddling like this, it's called spooning." I stated.

"Okay?" Daryl said.

"The one that has their arms around the other person, so that would be you right now, is the big spoon." I laughed. "I could be the big spoon tonight."

"Nah." He said. "I'm the big spoon. Yer one 'a them tiny baby spoons."

I laughed. I actually heard Daryl laughing too. "You're a giant soup spoon." I said.

He chuckled. "Yer a toothpick." We both laughed some more. He pulled me closer to him so that we couldn't possibly get any closer. "Go to sleep, shorty." He said. I put my hand over his.

* * *

I woke up at some point, it was still night because it was still dark. I looked at my clock, it was four in the morning. We still had two hours before my alarm went off. I heard Daryl mumbling something in his sleep and realized that's what woke me. He was facing away from me. It sounded like he was having a nightmare. "Daryl." I gently shook him. "Wake up, tough guy."

"Huh?" He opened his eyes and looked around.

"You were having a nightmare." I kissed him by his ear. "You okay?" I pushed his hair out his face.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said quickly. He seemed a little embarrassed.

"I didn't know you had nightmares? I have them, too, sometimes."

He looked at me. "Ya do? Why? What are they about?" He sounded as though he became instantly concerned.

"I-I don't know. I usually forget as soon as I wake up...most of the time."

He laid his head back down. "Me too." He sighed. "Let's just go back to sleep."

I nodded. I won't push him if he doesn't want to talk about it. "Can I be the big spoon now?"

"…if you want to."

I smiled. I wrapped my arms around him and got comfortable. I soon fell asleep.

* * *

Daryl and I got up when my alarm went off at six this morning. I had to check to make sure my dad or Michonne wasn't downstairs before Daryl came out of my room. They weren't. I gave Daryl the signal and we beat it out of there.

I knocked on the door and waited for Siddiq to open it. Then, I turned to Daryl. "I still don't know how I feel about this."

"What do you mean?" I frowned.

"He's gonna thank this is weird. Me bein' here."

I gave him a small smile. "It'll be fine."

Just then, the door opened. "Oh, morning, Abigail." He stepped aside so we could go in.

"Morning." I smiled and stepped inside. Daryl followed.

"I'm surprised to see you here, Daryl." Siddiq said. "Do you have something that needs looked at?"

"Nah." He answered immediately.

"He's here for me." I stated. Siddiq turned to me and gave me a weird look. "I, uh…wanted someone to come with me but my dad and Michonne were busy." I smiled.

"Oh, I see." Siddiq said. "Shall we get started then?"

"Yes." I said then looked at Daryl. He was giving me a look. I smiled at him as if saying, "I told ya so."

I laid down on the cot while Siddiq started my sonogram. "How far along am I now?" I asked.

"I'd say about just over two months." The doctor stated. "Well, everything looks good—wait, what's this?"

I became immediately alarmed and looked at him wide-eyed. "What? What's wrong?"

"Uh, nothing's wrong, it's just…" He trailed off and looked surprised. "Oh my goodness." He smiled at me. "I'm so happy to be the one to tell you this." He got all like...cheerful out of nowhere. Now I was really curious. I cocked an eyebrow at him. "Congratulations, Abby. You're having twins." He smiled.

At first, it felt like someone punched me in the stomach. Then once the news fully sank in, I gasped and then I was all smiles. "Twins?" I said excitedly. "Is this for real? Are you sure?"

"Oh yes." Siddiq said. "Take a look for yourself." He showed me on the screen. I could also hear two different heartbeats. I couldn't believe it! That was magical!

"Oh my God." I was so happy. However, Daryl looked horrified when I looked at him. I gave him a weird look but then just ignored it and went back to my babies. My _babies! _

* * *

I grinned from ear to ear looking at the photo Siddiq gave me all the way home. "Can you believe this?" I said to Daryl. "We're having twins." I was so excited.

"No, I cain't." He said roughly. "And keep yer voice down."

I looked at him. "Daryl, what's wrong?"

"What do ya mean, 'what's wrong?' We're havin' two babies at the same time." He didn't sound happy at all. "I don't thank I can do this." I stopped and looked at him.

_What? Is he serious? _"You said that you'd try." I looked at him wide-eyed.

"Yeah, but that was when we was havin' one baby, not two." He snapped.

"Daryl, don't do this." I shook my head.

"I ain't doin' nothin'." He said roughly. We were quiet for a moment. "I gotta get back to camp." He started walking towards the gate.

"Daryl." I called. He ignored me. I took a deep breath. I decided not to let him bother me. I knew that he wasn't serious, he was just scared about being a father to two babies. He will come around eventually. I put my hand on my stomach and smiled down. _Twins! _

* * *

I walked inside of my house with a huge smile on my face, I just couldn't help it. My dad and Michonne were up now and in the kitchen. "Morning." I walked over to them.

"What's got you all smilin'?" My dad questioned.

I grinned from ear to ear and showed him the photo. He looked at it and smiled. "Oh, look at that." He said. Michonne looked at it, too, but she gasped. She realized before my dad did.

"I'm having twins!" I yelled.

"What?" My dad looked genuinely surprised. "Seriously?"

"Yeah." I nodded rapidly.

"Congratulations, honey!" Michonne said and hugged me. I laughed.

"My little girl is having twins?" My dad said. I think he's still in shock.

"Yes, daddy, I'm having twins!" I almost started jumping up and down.

"Oh my God." It finally hit him, I guess. "Come here." He hugged me and lifted me. I giggled. He finally set me down then kissed my cheek several times making me laugh some more. "I'm so happy for you, baby."

"Thanks, daddy." I smiled.

"Well, you know what that means, right?" Michonne said to me.

"What?"

"You gotta work a little harder to be healthy, which means," she sat a plate of food in front of me, "you gotta eat twice as more."

I looked down at the plate. There was eggs and pancakes. "Great. I'm starving." I laughed and sat down beginning to eat. "I'm eating for three now."

My dad and Michonne laughed.

* * *

I was sitting on the stairs outside with Judith a little later. My dad left a while ago back to camp and Michonne was around doing something. I still hadn't gotten over the fact that I was pregnant with twins. I just sat there smiling at my belly. I never thought in a million years that this would ever happen to me.

Just then, I heard yelling and looked up. I stepped off the stairs and looked down. Maggie was here! Her and Michonne were standing outside the jail arguing. _Uh oh! That can only be for one thing. _Maggie has finally come to kill Negan.

"Come here, Judy." I picked her up and quickly took her to Alice's house.

"Hey." I said when she answered the door. "I know it's not your turn today but could you please watch her for me? I have to take care of something important."

"Of course, Abby." She smiled.

"Thank you." I handed Judith to her.

"Oh, congrats on your twins." Alice smiled.

_Wow! Good news really travels fast! I wonder who told her? _I didn't have time to think about that, though. "Thanks." I smiled.

I quickly took off in the direction of the jail. When I got there, only Michonne was there. "Hey, what's goin' on?" I asked her.

"You should be inside resting." She gave me a look.

"All I've been doing is resting." I said annoyed.

She gave me another look but then answered my question. "Maggie's here. She wanted to see Negan." She pointed at the door.

My eyes widened. "She's in there? You let her go in?" I tried to go inside but Michonne stopped her.

"It's over. She made it very clear that this is what she has to do."

"That's not her decision to make." I said immediately.

"It wasn't ours either." She said completely serious. I just looked at her. "I know how you feel about this, I feel the same way, but…try to imagine how Maggie feels."

I stopped to think for a moment. If someone killed Daryl, I would definitely want them dead. No questions about it. I didn't have that kind of love back then. I put my head down. Still, I didn't want Negan to die. I looked back up at Michonne.

"I'm sorry, Abby. It's over." She shook her head slowly. I looked sadly at her.

I waited there with Michonne until Maggie came out. To our surprise, she came out sooner than I thought she would. Her weapon was clean. We could tell by the look on her face that she didn't go through with it. Her mouth pressed into a thin line when she looked at us confirming that she didn't kill Negan. I wonder what happened?

I didn't have too much time to think, though, because a voice came though on Michonne's walkie and told us that the camp was overrun by a herd of walkers. My eyes widened. Daryl and my dad are there.

"Let's go." Maggie said. They started running. I followed them.

"No, Abby." Michonne said. "Just stay here."

"No way!" I said. "I'm coming to help."

"You don't need to, though!"

"You can't stop me." I stated. And that was it.

* * *

We met up with Carol along the way and the four of us arrived at the camp, but we got split up. I was with Maggie. There were walkers everywhere. "Heads up!" I yelled to her. I stabbed one in the head.

"Where the hell is everyone?" Maggie said.

"Hopefully gone and not dead." I breathed. I was feeling a little out of shape.

"Abby, look out!" Maggie screamed. I turned and there was a walker right about to get me. I saw an arrow go through its head. I looked over wide-eyed. Daryl was there.

"Daryl!" I ran to him.

"Abby." He sounded relieved. He put his hands on my waist and I grabbed onto his arms. I saw Maggie giving us a weird look. I felt a little embarrassed and my face was probably a little red, so we pulled away from each other.

"What happened?" Maggie asked him.

"I don't know. I just got here." Daryl said. "The herd came through. We gotta go get Rick. He was headed to the bridge."

"Why?" I asked horrified. We began running in the direction of the bridge.

"He wanted to lead them away."

* * *

On the way, we ran back into Carol and Michonne, plus a lot of the others. We all headed to the bridge. Daryl made sure I stayed close to him and he looked out for me every time a walker approached.

I noticed Daryl was covered in bruises and small cuts and he was dirtier than usual. "What happened to you?" I asked him.

He looked hesitant. "…yer dad and I kinda got in a little fight and we got trapped in a hole."

My eyes widened. "You guys fought? Why? Did you—did you tell him about…?"

"Hell no." He said. I gave him a questioning look. "Don't worry about it. It ain't important right now."

I sighed and just shrugged it off for now. "How come he went by himself?"

"Don't know. Guess he felt responsible cuz the bridge was his idea."

I nodded. That sounds like my dad.

* * *

Daryl and I reached the bridge first. We saw my dad standing at the end. There were so many walkers up there! I gasped. "Daryl." I said with clear concern. He immediately shot one with his crossbow that was getting close to my dad. My dad looked and finally noticed us. I saw that he was holding his side and it was bleeding pretty bad. I gasped and grabbed onto Daryl.

The others caught up with us. "What is he doing?" I heard Maggie, I think, yell.

"He's hurt!" I looked at Daryl. I was very worried.

"That herd that went right through Hilltop." Someone said. I wasn't really listening. I was just concerned about my dad.

"He's trying to bring down the bridge." Daryl said.

"No." Michonne said. "We turn them around. Fight 'em back."

"Fire your guns." Carol said. "Try to divert them." They all started running to the other side of the bridge.

I tried to follow them but Daryl stopped me. "No, just stay 'ere."

I was reluctant but obliged. Daryl and I shot walkers that were coming close to my dad.

Just then, I saw my dad look at us and he shook his head. He slowly lifted his gun. _What is he doing? There's too many for him to fight off. _I looked up and around and realized that the dynamite in the barrel was on the ground. My eyes widened. That's what he's pointing his gun at.

"No." I said out loud. "No!" I shook my head. "NO!"

I heard the gunshot then there was immediately a huge explosion. I looked down then my eyes widened. "NOOO!" I screamed once I came out of my shock. "NOO! NOOO!" I tried to run up there, but Daryl stopped me.

"No." He said. "No, he's gone. He's gone."

I collapsed onto the ground screaming and crying. Daryl had his hands on my shoulders. _MY DAD CAN'T BE GONE! HE CAN'T BE! _

I could hear Daryl crying lowly. I was hysterical, though. I sat there on the ground crying harder and louder than I ever have before in my life. "Dad! Daddy!" I cried.

Suddenly, I felt Daryl take his hands off of me and at some point, I looked back and he was walking away.

Alone.

Just like me.


	14. Look After You

I laid on my bed curled into a ball and watched the days go by. I watched it turn from day to night and back again. I didn't go anywhere. I didn't do anything. I just lay here in my bed. I have been wearing one of my dad's shirts since his death. I never take it off.

This is the deepest depression that I have had ever.

"Abby." Michonne shook me. "Come on. I made you some soup. You have to eat and get your strength up." I didn't even acknowledge her. "Come on, honey, you're pregnant, remember?"

I ignored her completely and didn't even move. I knew I was being irresponsible. I knew I needed to take care of my babies, but I just couldn't. My body wouldn't let me. What makes things worse is I haven't seen Daryl all this time. I don't think anyone has. If there's one person I need right now it's him.

I heard Michonne sigh. She sat the tray of food on my nightstand, and I heard her footsteps walk away.

Another time, Michonne came in to try and help me again. Part of me felt bad because I know she misses my dad terribly bad, too, but my dad was my best friend. We were so close, I…I can't even think about it. It hurts. Also, Michonne found out she was pregnant, too, one day. I wanted to be happy for her, I really did, but something wouldn't let me. My dad didn't even get to know, he won't get to see his son or daughter. And he doesn't get to meet his grandchildren either. He would have been a great pappy.

"Abby, why don't you take a shower?" Michonne said to me. "It might make you feel better? Well…not better but it will feel good."

I ignored her again until she left.

Then, there was one other time I recall.

"Abby, let's go for a walk." I felt her rubbing my back. "Come on, you've been in here a long time. Some fresh air will do you good."

Still no reply. Still no movement.

And then she left. I was left alone. Again.

I guess most of it was me doing it to myself. Still…I was alone…

* * *

Until one particular day, something amazing happened…

I was laying on my bed like I always do when I heard a bit of a commotion downstairs. No one was yelling, just talking. My house was always quiet these days.

Anyway, I heard talking and then heavy footsteps. My door opened.

"Abigail." I heard his voice. It made me snap out of it some.

"Daryl?" I said lowly but still didn't move. He walked closer to me. I still hadn't seen his face but I could feel him.

"Come on." He said. "Come on, darlin." He gently lifted me and started carrying me away. I finally looked at him and we locked eyes.

"Where you are you taking me?" I asked once we were outside. He didn't answer me right away.

"…someplace safe." He finally said. "Where I can keep an eye on you, look after you and the babies."

The way he said the last part made me feel warm inside. "We shouldn't go anywhere far away. I need to be around a doctor in case something happens with the babies." I was still talking quietly and like I was out of it.

"Don't worry. We ain't leavin' Alexandria." Daryl informed me.

He took me to a house and unlocked the door. "This is our new, _temporary _home." He said.

I became saddened. _He's going to leave again._

Daryl took me to the bathroom and finally set me down. I heard him starting the water for a bath. Then, he began helping me out of my clothes.

He helped me bathe, he was being very gentle, although, it wasn't romantic at all. It was almost as if he was taking care of a hurt animal. I laid my head back against the wall in my depression.

"Abby, you gotta snap out of it. Ya got children to worry about." Daryl said. "Abby, you can hear me, right?"

"He promised me." I finally said.

"What?"

"He promised me he'd never leave me." I cried. I started crying pretty hard.

"We all miss 'im, Abby." Daryl said. "But he wouldn't want ya bein' like this. He'd want you to take care 'a yerself and yer babies. And ya know that."

I took a few deep breaths trying to calm down. "It's so hard."

"I know." He said. "I know. But ya gotta do it."

I looked down sadly. We were quiet for a moment. I watched Daryl walk away and get a towel. "Come on." He said. He helped me up then wrapped the towel around me and dried me off.

Daryl helped me get dressed afterwards, too. Then, he even made dinner for the two of us. I sat there sadly and quietly pushing my food around. I only ate the tiniest bit. Looking around, things just didn't look right to me. They didn't look real, almost as if this was a cartoon or something.

I didn't talk the whole time, either. I did, however, see Daryl giving me glances. I knew he wanted to say things to me, but I didn't want to ask him what. So, I just sat there and waited for him to speak.

"Ya been sleepin'?"

"No." My voice was all shaky. "Hardly at all."

"…well, then, ya need rest." He said then took a gulp of water. "Is that all yer eatin'?"

"I can't eat anymore." I breathed. "I tried."

He nodded. "Let's get ya to bed then. Come on." He helped me up and helped me upstairs.

* * *

Daryl put a blanket over me. "You good?" I didn't say anything to that. Daryl said some stuff here and there but I didn't answer him. "Ya okay?" He finally asked me.

I started shaking my head and some tears fell. "Why'd you leave me again? How could you do that to me…again?"

He didn't answer me right away. "I been…I been lookin' fer yer dad." He finally said. I looked at him more closely. "I ain't found a body yet."

I started crying again. "If that's supposed to make me feel better, it doesn't!"

"I'm just statin' a fact." He reached behind him. "But maybe this will." He had my dad's gun. My eyes widened. "I found it by the shore. Thought it'd only be right to let you have it." He handed it to me. I looked at it, then hugged it to my chest. _I have something now._

I calmed down after that. I shivered. "Are there any extra blankets? I'm freezing."

Daryl slowly stood up and started taking off his shoes then his vest. I caught onto what he was doing and just looked at him. He paused and looked at me then cleared his throat. He quickly got in bed with me and wrapped his arms around me. I started to heat up instantly. I turned to face him so I could kiss him, but he stopped me.

"No, this is temporary."

"Why?" I asked in confusion.

"Because." He snapped. I gave him a hurt look and he must have noticed because his expression softened. "Sorry. I just…we cain't no more."

"Why?" I had tears in my eyes. "You said you loved me. Do you not love me anymore?" I said horrified.

"I do love you. I do." Daryl said. "But…ya don't love me."

"What are you talking about?" I said completely shocked and confused. "I love you so much! You know I do! I—

"No, Abby, ya don't understand."

"Then, make me understand!" I snapped.

He just looked at me for a long time. "I…cain't-I cain't be loved."

I cocked an eyebrow at him. "You can't be loved? That's your answer?" He didn't say anything to that. "Well, that's just stupid. _I _love you, so you're loved."

He shook his head. "Nah. Ya don't."

"Daryl!" I yelled. "You aren't gonna tell me how _I_ feel! I love you! I do! I promise." I was close to tears. This man sure makes me cry a lot.

"…you just…you just don't get it." He said quietly. I almost felt bad for him. I put my hand on his face and tried to kiss him again. "No, Abigail." He turned his face away. "I told ya already...this is temporary."

I breathed. A stray tear slid down my cheek and I started breathing heavily. "Please, Daryl. I need to feel something." I paused. "I've been numb. All I've been feeling is numbness and I NEED to feel SOMETHING. So, please." I looked at him. "Please." I cried and touched his face. "Please. Please."

Daryl gave in and gave me what I wanted. We kissed each other slowly, then he moved down to my neck. I breathed. I was already so horny. It's been a while since we did anything. He took my shirt off for me and kissed me all over. I was practically panting.

"Okay." I said. "Okay." I laid down and took my underwear off, throwing them aside. Daryl did the same with the rest of his clothes. Then, he crawled on top of me. He slammed into me making me cry out. He started moving really fast.

"Ow, Daryl." I cringed. "What are you doing?" _Maybe at the end but not right off the bat. _

"Sorry." He slowed down. _That's better. _I was breathing heavily. I took in every single part of him. I _loved _every single part of him. How could he say that he can't be loved? How could he say that I don't love him? I obviously do. Then again, he did say that he's never been in a relationship either. Maybe he doesn't really know what love is. But he loves me? I know he does. Well…he does have a tough exterior. I almost laughed. _My tough guy. _Then there it was. The feeling that I have been so dying to feel. I breathed slowly as I came down from my high.

Daryl slowly pulled out of me after he finished, then laid next to me. I kissed his cheek. "Thank you." I said all breathy and smiled. I laid my head on his chest and put my arm around him. I felt his chin on my head. I missed this so much. I slept great that night.

* * *

Being with Daryl, or I should say Daryl being there made me feel better. It made me want to take care of myself. It made me want to eat. It made me care. He made me care. I wish he knew how much I truly loved him.

I tried to show him over these passed few days but he was being cold. And it didn't make sense because he could do what he wanted to me but if I tried to do something to him, he would push me away. For instance, if I was standing there making breakfast, he would come over to me and kiss me from behind and maybe even slap my bottom. However, if he were doing something like cleaning his crossbow and I tried to be playful with him, he would stop me. I really don't understand him sometimes. And it hurts. A lot.

We had a bit of a disagreement today because he wanted to go on a run to look for some things, and I said I wanted to go, too. I said I could go fishing and bring in some food for everyone else(I can't eat fish right now). Anyway, he got so mad and told me I needed to stay here. I really wanted to help, though. All I have been doing is staying inside. So, I insisted on going with him. He's still pretty mad about it. But…he's going to have to deal with it.

* * *

I waited outside a house for Daryl to come out. Finally, he did. "Find anything good?"

"Nah." Was all he said, then walked passed me. I sighed.

"You could at least pretend not to be annoyed, ya know?" I said following him.

"You could 'a stayed home, ya know?" He imitated me.

"For the last frickin' time: I'm fine." I said clearly irritated. "I'm only four months. Nothing is going to happen."

"Ya didn't need to come, though." He said roughly.

"Well, I did. So, get over yourself." I looked down at the map. I have become a pretty good navigator. I sighed. "We should check these two places. One's a school. They might have some things there."

"What? Erasers?"

I wanted to laugh, but I wasn't going to give in. I gave him an annoyed look. "They do have school for the kids back home, you know? Wouldn't hurt to grab some school supplies. Although, I was mainly referring to the nurse's office. We might be able to get some medical supplies."

"Sure, whatever."

* * *

We made our way to the school. Daryl and I banged on the windows to see if any walkers came, we didn't see any. "Alright, I'm gonna do this. You stay outside, okay?"

"Are you crazy?" I gave him a stupid look. He turned to me. "I'm not letting you go in there by yourself. You don't know what's in there. What if there's walkers everywhere and you get cornered? You could get stuck somewhere and then what?"

He brought his face close to mine. "I ain't havin' this conversation, little girl." He said roughly.

"Yeah, you're right. We're not." I opened the door and quickly walked passed him and inside. He ran and walked in front of me. "I'm pretty sure the nurse's office is down that way." I pointed down a hallway. "I see the main office and usually the nurse is right by that." I headed down there.

Daryl stepped in front of me. "Me first."

We quietly and cautiously walked down the hall. I was right, the nurses office was right there. There was a walker on the other side of the door. Daryl opened it a little and then killed it. Then, we both went in.

We filled bags with as much supplies as we could. There wasn't a lot but it was something. I found some feminine supplies in a closet. _Good. _I stuffed them in my bag.

"You good?" Daryl asked me.

I looked up from my bag. "Yeah, let's go." I slung it over my shoulder.

We left that room, Daryl was headed towards the door. "Well, wait, where are you going?"

"We're done here. We got enough shit."

"What about the school supplies?"

He snorted. "If you wanna go lookin' fer some school shit, have fun." He turned his back and continued walking away.

"Fine. I will." I walked down the hall.

"Abby." Daryl called. "Abby." I heard his footsteps and knew he was making his way back over to me. "This is stupid, let's just go."

"We can check out a few classrooms, Daryl. The kids need some stuff."

We continued walking around the school looking for supplies. We got a few things. Wasn't really what I had in mind, but I guess it will have to do.

When we were leaving one of the rooms, a walker emerged from nowhere and I quickly killed it. Then, I heard a noise and looked down another hall. There was a huge crowd of walkers headed our way.

"Ya wanna leave now?" Daryl said.

I nodded. "Yeah, that might be a good idea."

We ran to a set of doors but they wouldn't open. "Shit." I said beginning to panic. If something happens to us, it's on me because I'm the one that wanted to keep looking for supplies.

"There." Daryl pointed to a room. We ran inside and closed the door. I hopped up on the vent and opened a window. "Damnit!" I said. "I forgot these things only open halfway."

"Stand back." Daryl said. He picked up a chair and threw it at the window. It shattered. He hopped up on the vent. "Come on." He helped me up and out the window, I stumbled and almost fell. Then, he hopped out himself. "Are you okay?" He asked me immediately.

"Yeah." I nodded still breathing heavily.

He looked relieved then became angry and walked passed me. I sighed.

* * *

Later on, we were down by the river. I was trying to fish. I wasn't having any luck today. It looked like it was about to storm.

Daryl and I haven't talked for a long time. I was getting sick of it.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" I finally said. "You were right. I shouldn't be out here." I looked down. "I just wanted to help. I've been feeling worthless lately. I don't have a job anymore."

Daryl looked angrily at me. "Yer carryin' twins." He snapped. "Yer a mom, that's yer job now." I heard some thunder roar.

I huffed. "Oh yeah? And what's your job, Daryl? To boss me around?"

"I'm tryin' to look after you!" He raised his voice. "But yer makin' everythang more difficult than it needs to be."

"I am?" I yelled back. "What, you," I got up and walked over to him, "you left me like five times! Is that how you're looking out for me?"

"I ain't doin' this right now." He said roughly and tried to walk away. I grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"Well, I am." I snapped. "You don't get to end an argument because it's not going your way. You're being really unfair to me."

"I made a promise to you and I'm gonna keep it." He said quickly.

I laughed. "You made a promise? What? Is this the fourth or fifth one now?"

"Go back home!"

"Go to hell!" I yelled. We glared at each other.

Just then, it started to rain and thunder and lightning. A gunshot was heard from a distance. My eyes widened and we started looking around. "You heard that too, right?"

"Yeah. Get down." Daryl put his arm on me. Another gunshot was heard and Daryl went down.

"Daryl!" I screamed. He got shot in the leg. I got down on the ground with him.

He groaned in pain. "I'm alright. Run into the woods."

"Not so fast." A voice said. I froze. There was a man standing there. "I want everything you got."

I wasn't even worried about him right now. I was worried about getting Daryl help. "Take it!" I threw our bags in front of the guy and glared at him.

"That ain't it." The man said. "I want the crossbow, too."

"Yeah?" Daryl said. "Come get it." It continued to storm.

The man walked over with his gun pointed. I reached down and felt for my knife. I started breathing heavily. _I'm gonna do it. _I pulled it out when the man was paying attention to Daryl and threw it at him. I hit him perfectly in the neck. Then, Daryl jumped on him and grabbed his gun. He groaned in pain from his leg wound.

The guy was dead, I ripped my knife from his throat. I grabbed our bags. "Come on, Daryl, we gotta go!" I yelled. I put his arm around me and helped him walk. We ran through the woods.

I looked down at Daryl's leg at some point, it was bleeding pretty bad. "We have to find somewhere I can treat it." I said.

"Yeah, back at Alexandria." He said weakly.

"No, it's bleeding too much, we have to stop it now." My voice cracked, probably giving away how worried I was. I didn't want him to know that.

"I'll be fine."

"Don't argue with me." I said. I was panicking inside.

As we were running, I saw a house up ahead. "There." I said. "Come on." I started making us run faster. I heard Daryl groan every once in a while. I knew he was trying to be tough, but I could tell he was in pain.

He fell once on the way. "Damnit." He grimaced.

"Come on." I said. "We're almost there."

I practically kicked the door down, I quickly checked around. It was clear. "Come on." I helped Daryl inside. There was a bedroom to the left of us so I quickly took him in there and helped him to the bed. Then, I immediately dumped the contents out of our bags trying to find what I could use. I grabbed gauze, dressing and got a towel from the bathroom. I put pressure on the wound. Daryl grimaced. I looked at him, he was turning pale. "Don't worry, you're gonna be okay."

"Is there an exit wound?"

I gently lifted his leg a little so I could look. "Yeah." I said. "As soon as I stop the bleeding, I can treat it. You're so lucky it didn't hit that artery."

"Yeah. Ya did a god job killin' that guy." Daryl said weakly. He was laying back on the bed. He probably feels so out of it right now.

"I didn't even think about it, I just did it." I flipped the towel around. "I wasn't gonna let him take our supplies. There's stuff in there that I needed for your wound." The towel was filled with blood now. "I need to get another towel." I said. I ran to the bathroom and got a few more then went right back applying pressure on it.

"Daryl, I've been at this for almost fifteen minutes now and the bleeding isn't slowing up. I think you need stitches." I looked up at him when he didn't answer me. He was just laying there. "Daryl? Daryl!" I was beginning to panic but then I saw his chest raising and falling. He just passed out.

I got my sewing needle and thread out of my bag. I always carry it with me, you never know what could happen. This is going to have to work. I thought while threading the needle. I don't have stitches, this is all I have.

I quickly took off Daryl's shoes then gently took off his pants. I stitched up the front wound first then I did the back. I don't know if it was wrong to do that but I didn't know what else to do. At least the bleeding stopped. I let out a sigh of relief.

I sat next to him on the bed and pushed his hair back. "You're gonna be okay, tough guy."

* * *

**Happy Mother's Day! Please leave me a review and tell me what you thought of this chapter! :D What do you think will happen with Daryl and Abby? Do you think Daryl will be okay? Let me know! Hope everyone has a good weekend!**


	15. Coming Undone

I sat there for a long time just watching Daryl sleep and listening to the pouring rain outside. He deserves a good rest. I looked down at his leg, I just hope he'll be all right. I sighed heavily. _Well, what should I do now? _I stared at Daryl. I guess maybe I could wash him up a bit…and his clothes.

I gently took his clothes off, leaving his boxers on. I decided to wash his clothes first so they would have a while to dry. I filled a bucket with some soapy water and scrubbed the hell out of his clothes. They smelled pretty bad. I think this is his only change of clothes. I should see if he wants some of my dad's stuff.

I hung his clothes up in the bathroom to dry. Then, I washed out the bucket and filled it with clean water and soap. I washed his face first being very gentle. He has a gorgeous face, even though he doesn't think so. I love everything about this man. I rung out the rag and washed his arms next.

By the time I got down to his legs, the water was like a brownish gray color. He sure was dirty. _He's my dirty, tough guy. _I smiled.

After drying him off, I pulled the covers out from under him and covered him up. Then, I kissed his forehead. "I love you, tough guy. Sleep tight."

I couldn't go to sleep, I had to be awake in case Daryl woke up or something happened. I put a bottle of Aleve on the nightstand. He will need something for pain when he wakes up.

I decided to go through our bags and sort things out. I put all the medical supplies into one bag and then the school supplies in the other. Everything was mixed up before. _That's better, I guess. _

Just then, I heard Daryl start to stir in his sleep and jumped up. "Daryl?" I said. He opened his eyes and looked at me. I gave him a warm smile and greeted him. "Hey, welcome back." I pushed his hair back. "How ya feelin'? You okay?"

He cleared his throat then tried to say something but his voice was all raspy. "Oh, you need water. You're probably thirsty." I got out a bottle and handed it to him. He started drinking it down. "Here, take these." I gave him two Aleve. He took them without question. _Aw, my baby is in pain. _He set the empty bottle down and exhaled sharply. He winced as he took the blankets off and looked down at his leg.

"You took care 'a me?" Was the first thing he said.

"Of course." I smiled. "I had to."

He kind of just looked down tiredly. There was a pause.

"I washed your clothes, too." I informed him. "They're in the bathroom but they're probably still drying." I got up to go check. I felt his jeans, they were damp. "Yup, still wet." I went back into the room. Daryl had moved to the side of the bed so that his feet were touching the floor. "We should stay a while, the night at least, then when you're feeling up to it, we can head home. Well, back to Alexandria."

Daryl was looking down, he looked sad. Or maybe just sick? I couldn't tell. He hadn't said anything for a while. "Daryl? Are you alright, tough guy?" I asked concerned.

"I'm sorry." He said quietly.

"What? You're sorry?" I questioned. "What are you sorry for?" I sat next to him.

"I-I believe ya now." He stammered. I was confused, I just kept looking at him. Something about him wasn't right, I started rubbing his back to try and comfort him. "I know ya love me now. I'm sorry fer bein' an idiot."

I moved so I was sitting behind him. "No." I kissed his back. "You're not an idiot. It's okay." I wrapped my arms around him and laid my head on his back. I heard kind of like low whimpering sounds. I lifted my head and tried to look around him. "Daryl, are you crying?"

"Nah." He said immediately. I knew he was. I crawled around him so I could see his face, being careful of his leg.

"Daryl, it's okay." I pressed my face against his and just held him. "It's okay." We stayed like that for a long time. I played with his hair.

Daryl began planting kisses down my neck. My heart began to race and my breathing quickened. I stopped him before we went any farther. "We can't." I said. "Your leg."

He glanced down for a second. "It's fine." He nodded. "I want to. Do you?"

"I always want to." I admitted with a smirk. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"Well, you can…" He trailed off trying to think. He looked up at me. I knew what he was thinking but he didn't want to say it. I gave him a smile and nodded. I removed my clothing and helped him take off his boxers. Then, I sat on top of him. I had to be very careful doing this because if I hit his leg, not only is it going to hurt him but the stitches might open up. I had to fuck him quick. I used my skills from the other times we did things. Like that one time in the bath tub where I made him talk dirty. I smiled at the memory.

* * *

Daryl and I lay next to each other. I had my arm around him with my head on his chest taking in everything. The best feeling in the world is being with my tough guy. I smiled.

I kissed his hand. "You know those fews days we spent together at that house? You know, when my dad left?"

"Yeah?" Daryl said.

"That was the best time of my life."

Daryl was quiet for a moment. "Me too." He finally said. I smiled and looked up at him. We kissed each other. "But I have to tell ya somethin'." He said. I gave him a curious look. "I wasn't blacked out like you was. In fact, I 'member the whole thang."

I looked up at him with my mouth gaped open but still smiled. "You jerk." I gently pushed him. "You tried to blame it all on me."

Daryl chuckled. "I couldn't let ya know that."

"Well, I'm glad you told me now." I smiled. "After you rejected me, I thought we only hooked up because you were drunk. It was a dream come true for me, though."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yup. I liked you the moment you threw those squirrels at my dad. I just didn't know it yet."

He smirked probably thinking back all that time. "When did ya know ya liked me then?"

I tried to think. "I'm pretty sure it was when we were on that mission to get Beth back, you know, from the hospital?"

"Yeah." Daryl nodded.

"You were lookin' fine." I giggled. He made a face but I could tell he wanted to laugh. "Well, what about you?"

"Huh?"

"When was it that you realized you liked me?"

He looked nervous. "I feel like no matter what answer I give, it's gonna get me in trouble."

I giggled. "Just tell me."

He looked away from me and at the window. "I thank...I thank it was that day, the first time we was at the kingdom and we saw that tiger. I saw yer face and it just…I don't know." He shrugged. "You was so…cute."

I smiled at him. "Aw, so my tough guy has a soft side." I laid my head back on him.

"Yeah, yeah." He said kind of annoyed.

"I like that." I said softly. "Tough but tender." I giggled then Daryl surprisingly laughed a little, too.

We were quiet for a while. "So, speaking of my dad," I started to say, "this one time…" I trailed off. "Never mind." I shook my head.

"No, what? I wanna hear."

"You sure?" I asked him. He nodded. "Okay." I shrugged. I cleared my throat and sat up a little. "So, I used to sit with my dad in morning before he would leave for work, we had like our daddy and daughter time. And the one day he was reading the penny saver and says, 'oh, look an ad for a free cat.' I got excited and said, 'let's get her!' Then he was like, 'no, let's not.' So, he left for work and several hours later, my mom started reading the penny saver and she saw the same ad. She said, 'hey someone's giving away a cat for free. You guys want her?" I was like, '…yeah, mom. Let's…get…that cat.' All like suspicious. Did not tell her anything about the conversion I had with my dad earlier."

Daryl let out a small laugh.

"Anyway, we got the cat and brought her home. My mom was holding her when my dad walked in." I stopped because I started laughing real hard. "Sorry, I was just remembering his face." I laughed again. "He was like wide-eyed."

Daryl laughed. "I can just imagine. Was he mad?"

"No, he never got mad at me." I laughed. "But I did tell them about the conversation we had after. I shrugged and said, 'oops.' Like I was so innocent. My dad just picked me up and told me I was sneaky. Then, he pinched my cheek." I smiled. I got tears in my eyes, just then, because I missed him so much. "He wasn't just a great dad, he was the best." I sniffled.

Daryl sat up and wrapped his arms around me. "It's okay." He kissed me. "I know how close you two was and I'm sorry." He just held me like that while I cried.

Something about it made me feel better about my dad's death. I still miss him, don't get me wrong, I will always miss him, but…I just felt better. I finally got the comfort that I needed. And it was freeing. Now I can move on.

* * *

Several months later when I was getting closer to my due date, Siddiq and I were taking some fish that Daryl and I caught to the kingdom. I just figured it was a nice gesture. I will do it for Hilltop next. Siddiq said I didn't have to go and I should just stay home but I really wanted to get out for a while. Plus, I really wanted to see Carol.

We had a lot of fish to give them. I recalled the memory:

_I was doing really well, catching a lot and big ones, too. Daryl not so much. I could tell he was getting annoyed. I was excited, though. "Wow, check out the size of this guy." I said._

_"__Oh, shut up." Daryl said._

_"__Hey." I glared. "Don't tell me to shut up."_

_"__I can say whatever I want, I'm a grown ass man." He said roughly._

_I laughed. "Well, you sure aren't acting like one." I said putting the fish in the cooler._

_"__Like you would know."_

_"__Excuse me?" I quickly turned. "What did you just say to me?" He didn't reply just looked down guiltily but still looked angry. My expression softened. I know Daryl enough that he just doesn't act like this. There's clearly something bothering him. "What's wrong, tough guy? You were fine before."_

_"__Yeah, before." He said roughly._

_"__Before what?" I inquired. I looked at him waiting for an answer. He never said anything. I realized then what his problem was. I huffed and let out a little laugh. "Daryl Dixon." I put my hands on my hips. "You're jealous because I caught more fish than you, aren't you?" I looked at him. __He looked down and didn't say anything. I moved closer to him and kissed his head. "Why would you let that bother you?"_

_"__Cuz." He said roughly._

_"__Cause why?"_

_"…__cuz I'm s'pos to take care 'a you, not you take care 'a me."_

_"__Well, you're gonna have to get used to it because when the babies are born, I'll be taking care of everyone." I hugged him. "And you do take care of me. I always feel safe with my tough guy." _

_He looked annoyed but he gave in. He kissed my cheek._

"Hey, Abs." Jerry greeted me at the door. I smiled and we hugged. "Wows, you're lookin' as big as me these days."

"Oh stop." I slapped his arm and laughed. He laughed, too. "I brought everyone some fish."

"Fish? Awesome." Jerry smiled. We had them in small coolers inside boxes. He started unloading the boxes.

"Let me help." I offered.

"No way. I'm not letting a pregnant lady lift any heavy boxes. Mhmm. No can do."

"You sure?"

"Yup, we got it." Diane said.

"Okay." I smiled. "Where's Carol?"

"Inside with the king." Jerry informed me.

"Thanks. I'll go in." I made my way over there and knocked on the door. Henry opened it. "Hey, Henry. How are you?"

"I'm good." He stared at my belly.

"I know, right?" I said. "I'm huge."

"I-I wasn't—

"It's fine." I laughed. "Carol around?"

"Yeah, she's inside." He stepped aside so I could go in. I saw both Ezekiel and Carol in the living room. They looked up when they saw me.

"Hey." I smiled. They both greeted me with warm smiles. Ezekiel was there first.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes, Abby girl?" We both laughed and hugged. "Although, you should be resting at home, young lady."

"Oh stop. All I've been doing is resting." I turned to Carol and we hugged.

"How are you?" She said. "How are the twins?"

"We're all good. I'm due in like a month." I smiled nervously. Carol noticed.

"You're gonna be fine." She put a hand on my shoulder.

"I'll let you ladies talk." Ezekiel said. "Come, Henry." The two walked outside.

"I just, uh…I worry about, you know, my mom?"

She nodded. "That's not going to happen. You and both your babies will be fine. Siddiq is a good doctor."

"Yeah, you're right." I smiled. "I'm just letting my anxiety take over."

"Well, don't. That's not good for anyone."

I nodded. There was a brief pause.

"Well, come sit down." She motioned for me to come into the room more. "Let's catch up."

"Yeah." I smiled and picked a seat next to the fireplace.

* * *

Carol and I talked for a long time. She made me a nice cup of tea. I always use tea to calm my nerves. I also use it for cramps, but I haven't had to worry about that. That's something I do not miss. My periods are awful.

"I brought some fish, by the way." I said. "Daryl and I caught them."

"Oh, good." Carol smiled. "How is Daryl?"

I shrugged. "He's good. He's being Daryl." We both laughed. "He's pretty nervous about the babies." I took a sip of my tea. Then, I gasped inside. _Did I really just say that? _I felt all the blood drain from my face. I looked at Carol and she was giving me a weird look.

"Why would he be nervous, Abby?"

I had no idea what to say. "…uh…well he's been helping me and…" I trailed off. I really didn't know what else to say. I sat there nervously, she was still looking at me.

Then, she finally nodded. "It's okay. You don't have to explain. I know."

My eyes widened. "You-you know?"

"It's pretty obvious." She said. "You two have grown pretty close."

I sighed in relief. It felt so good to tell someone. I looked up at her and shook my head. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. He didn't want anyone to know. I don't know why?" I looked down.

"We were going to find out sooner or later." Carol sipped her tea.

I smiled shyly. "I…I've liked him for a long time actually." I looked down and smiled. "Do you think this is okay?" I looked back up at her.

"Why wouldn't it be?" She gave me a weird look. "If you two are both happy?"

"Yeah, we are." I admitted. "It's just…the age…I think that's what Daryl's worried about everyone knowing."

"You're not a kid anymore, Abby." Carol said. "Even though there is a pretty big age gap between you two, I don't think it matters if you both love each other."

I looked at her and smiled. That made me feel a lot better. "That's exactly how I feel."

She smiled back at me. There was a brief pause. I saw Carol look outside. "It'll be dark soon. You better stay the night here. You can stay in the guest room."

I nodded. "Thank you."

* * *

That night while getting ready for bed, I was cold and lonely. I had gotten so used to sleeping with Daryl. Our bodies pressed up against each other. Daryl was always warm. I'm missing that right now. I sleep a lot better now with him. I can't wait to get home to him. I thought as I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

We said our goodbyes early the next morning. They said I didn't have to leave so soon, but I said I really needed to get back home. I hugged Carol.

"Take care and remember what we talked about." She said. I nodded.

"Do come back and visit again. Preferably after those babies are born." Ezekiel said and hugged me.

"Of course." I smiled sweetly.

I saw Jerry walking out and had to say bye to him and I thought of the perfect way. "Hey, Jerry. Where'd ya get that mask? Halloween's a long time away." I laughed.

"Aw what?" He put a hand over his heart. "At least I can take mine off, though."

I laughed. "Jerk."

He laughed, too. "Leaving so soon?"

"Yeah, I gotta get back home." I smiled sadly.

"Well, I'll have to come visit soon." We hugged. "I promise."

"Yeah, definitely."

"Hey, that was some good fish." Jerry called as we were leaving.

"Thanks. Don't eat it all yourself." I teased.

He laughed. "That I can't promise."

I smiled at him behind me.

"So, how'd you sleep?" Siddiq asked me on our way home.

"Good." I nodded. "You?"

"Fine." He said.

We were quiet for a moment. "Actually, there's something I need to tell you." I became nervous and licked my lips before speaking. "I bled a little bit yesterday. The other day too." He looked at me. "I didn't tell you because of what you said about me having endometriosis."

"Yes, it's true that you may bleed a little towards the end of your pregnancy but…we should still take a look just to make sure."

I nodded. "Okay." I felt nervous.

Siddiq noticed. "Don't get all worried. It's probably nothing."

* * *

Siddiq checked me out as soon as we got back to Alexandria. "Everything seems to be okay." He said. "Still, I want you to be stress free. That's something that is not good for the babies. Get a lot of rest."

"Okay." I nodded and sighed. I smiled in relief, though. Time to head home and see my tough guy.

Daryl opened the door for me. "I'm surprised you're home, tough guy." I said. I stepped inside and we kissed each other as soon as the door closed.

He gave me a weird look, he could probably tell I looked a little worried. "You okay?"

I bit my lip. "Yeah, I'm fine. I went to see Siddiq before I came here, though."

"About the bleedin'?"

"Yeah, he said everything is fine and just told me to stay stress free." I smiled.

"Good." He kissed me again.

We pulled apart and I smiled at him then touched his cheek.

I went into the kitchen to make myself a cup of tea. Daryl noticed what I was doing. "I can do that, shorty."

"No, it's okay." I smiled. I put the teabag in a cup of water and put it in the microwave. I wiped my hands on a towel and suddenly I felt the babies kicking. I put my hand on my stomach. "Come here." I called Daryl. "Hurry!"

Daryl practically ran over to me. "What's wrong? You okay?"

"Feel." I grabbed his hand and put it on my stomach. "You feel that?" I watched his expression change and knew that he did.

"Wow…uh, that's really…somethin'." He said. I smiled excitedly at him and hugged him. He kissed my forehead.

"Let's do it on the couch again." I giggled. I grabbed his hand and led him over.

* * *

Later on, Daryl and I were eating dinner. "Oh yeah," I wiped my mouth on my napkin, "Carol asked about you."

"Yeah?" He said putting a forkful of food in his mouth.

"Yeah, I think she misses you. We should all go visit once the babies are born." I took a sip of my water.

"Nah, we cain't shorty." Daryl shook his head. "Not all at the same time. People might get ideas."

I just remembered about my talk with Carol yesterday. I have to tell him that she knows. Maybe he won't be too upset? I mean…it's Carol. I swallowed hard. "Actually, I have to tell you something, tough guy." He didn't look up from his food. I sighed. "Carol knows." I just blurted it out.

He finally looked up at me. "What?"

"Carol knows about us. About the babies being yours." I stared at him nervously. He just looked at me in shock.

"You told 'er?"

"It slipped out." I shook my head. "I'm sorry."

Daryl sat there for a while just staring at me. Then, he stood up quickly causing his chair to almost fall back. He looked at me angrily. I felt nervous. He began walking back and forth and breathing hard through his noise. He then picked his plate up and threw it at the wall.

My eyes widened and I jumped. "Daryl."

"I didn't want no one to know!" He screamed at me. I was scared. "What the hell, Abigail?"

"I told you, it slipped out." I said quietly.

"It slipped it out, huh?" He screamed almost in my face. "How can I ever trust ya again? What if it 'slips out' in front of another person?"

"It won't. I just made a mistake." I was close to tears. "It won't happen again."

"I don't believe you. You lied to me." He said roughly.

"It's okay, it was Carol. Why are you mad?"

"Cuz I didn't want no one to know! Don't make a difference who it is. It ain't okay."

"Daryl," I started, "I don't understand why you don't want people to know. I get why you didn't want my dad to know but…he's not here anymore. So, what is it? What's the problem?" I spoke softly.

He walked over to me and up to my face. I got a little scared. "The problem is, I knocked up a little girl. Where I'm from that's frowned on."

I hesitated. I got a little mad that he referred to me as a little girl. He knows I'm not. "Well, you're not there anymore."

He snorted and walked away. I looked back at me angrily and shook his head. I got up and walked closer to him. I put my hand on his arm but he threw it off making me gasp. "Don't touch me!" He yelled. He walked passed me and out the door slamming it behind him. I just put my head down and cried. Things were going so great for so long. Now they are coming undone.

* * *

Daryl came home about an hour later. I looked towards the door when it opened. He stood there and we locked eyes. He slowly walked over to where I was on the couch. Neither of us said anything. He sat down in the recliner.

"I take it you're still mad?" I finally asked.

He didn't answer me right away. It took him forever to say something. "I'm stayin' here til the babies are born so I can look after you, after that…I'm gone."

My eyes widened but then I thought for a minute and shook my head. "You're just saying that because you're mad. You don't really mean that."

He just stared at me. "You lied to me." He finally said then walked away.

I put my head down and silently cried. I couldn't hold it in any longer and a loud sob escaped.

* * *

**Man...Abby and Daryl's relationship sure is like a yo-yo lol PLEASE REVIEW! **


	16. At Or With Me

I got up the next morning pretty early. I took a shower then headed downstairs to make breakfast. Daryl was asleep on the couch, he never came up last night. I missed him a lot. I stared at him wondering how long he was going to stay mad at me.

I made some pancakes. Daryl had just woken up after the first batch. I didn't say anything to him right away. He did look at me, though.

I got a sharp pain just then, it was gone in a few seconds and didn't linger. I went back to the pancakes and flipped a couple more. Sighing, I stared at the back of Daryl's head. "You want some breakfast?" I asked him after clearing my throat.

He didn't say anything or even move from his spot. "Are you really not even going to talk to me?" My voice was shaky. He turned and gave me a look but didn't respond. Eventually, he just turned his back to me again. I started feeling very emotional, I turned around and was close to tears. But then, I got that feeling again, only it was more intense and it stayed longer. "Oh." I said out loud. I need to calm down. _Take slow deep breaths. _I coached myself. I tried but it wasn't working. The pain was getting very bad. "Ah!" I had to hold onto the counter. "Daryl, I think something's wrong." I said in pain. He was there in a second.

"What's wrong?"

"It hurts really bad." I was wide-eyed.

"Ya thank the babies are comin'?"

"No, that can't be. It's too early." I shook my head.

Daryl sighed quickly. "Let's get ya to Siddiq." He helped me walk.

"Ah!" I said in pain.

We got there pretty quickly. Daryl yelled for the doctor while we were still outside, he came running and let us in.

"What's going on?" He asked me immediately and had me lay down.

"It hurts really bad." I was growing more and more frantic. "Oh!"

"What does the pain feel like?" Siddiq asked. I briefly explained my pain and how often it occurs. "Abby, it sounds like you're in labor."

My eyes widened. "But how? Oh!" I grimaced. "It's not time yet."

"Sometimes women with endometriosis have premature birth." He stated. "They're going to come when they want. There's no stopping them now." He kind of smiled.

I gave Daryl a horrified look. "I'm scared." I said. Daryl gabbed my hand.

"There's nothing to be scared of." Siddiq said. "Everything is going to be okay."

"Oh." Another bad pain. I breathed heavily. "Someone has to get Michonne." I said. "She said she wants to be here."

"I'll go." Daryl nodded.

"No!" I grabbed his hand. "Daryl, don't leave me."

"Well, the doc cain't go." Daryl said. "I'll be right back, I promise." I watched him run out the door.

"Come on, Abby. Let's get your pants off." Siddiq instructed. I lifted up a little so he could take them off, then he put a blanket over me so I wasn't fully exposed. I grimaced as I had more pain. I was breathing pretty heavily. I watched Siddiq quickly grab what he needed. I'm so scared, I might pass out.

I heard footsteps outside and then Michonne and Daryl ran in the room. "Abby?" Michonne said concerned.

"I'm okay." I winced in pain. Siddiq was doing things, he checked my blood pressure.

Michonne came over to me and grabbed my hand. "It's gonna be okay." She pushed my hair back.

I nodded but I was still terrified.

"Okay, Abby, you ready?" Siddiq asked me while putting his gloves on. I whimpered. "I'm gonna need you to give me a nice big push, okay?"

I nodded. I tried my best. Something hurt very bad, I stopped and grimaced in pain and panted. I tried pushing again.

"No, stop." Siddiq said. "I don't think you're fully dilated yet."

I was breathing very heavily. I was already so tired. I cried.

"It's okay." Michonne said. "Look at me, it's okay."

I nodded. I looked down and saw Siddiq pull his hand away, there was blood. My eyes went wide. I looked around for Daryl and gave him a look. He moved to the other side of me.

"Something isn't right." Siddiq stated. "We're going to have to do a Cesarean delivery."

My eyes were wide again and I felt all the blood drain from my face. "No." I shook my head. I looked at Daryl and cried. Siddiq was giving us a questioning look.

"That's how her mom died." Daryl said to Siddiq.

He looked at me directly in the eyes. "Abby, I promise you that everything is going to be okay. I'm going to make sure of it. That's a promise, okay?"

I was terrified in that moment, more scared than I ever have been before, but...I knew we had to do it. We had to try. And so, I looked into his eyes and I believed him. I nodded.

He started by inserting an IV into my arm. The next thing was a catheter, I really didn't want that part but he said, it was to drain my bladder and make the procedure easier. Last, he gave me an anesthesia to numb my lower half. It hurt getting that but it actually wasn't as bad I thought. Siddiq said we had to wait a little for it to kick in.

I was laying there taking slow deep breaths trying to keep calm. "You're doing fine." Siddiq said.

"Everything is going to be okay." Michonne smiled at me then paused. "I wish your dad was here."

"Me too." I said. I looked down at her stomach, she was getting pretty big, too. I put my hand on it. "My kids are going to be older than their aunt or uncle." I laughed.

She laughed, too. "At least they will have each other to play with." She smiled. I smiled back and nodded.

I looked around because I realized Daryl was being very quiet. He was standing in the corner looking uncomfortable. I put my hand out for him to come over. He eventually did and held my hand.

"You okay?" He asked me.

I nodded. "I think so." I smiled at him.

"Okay, Abby." Siddiq said. "I think we're ready." I took a deep breath. He picked up a little knife. "Can you feel this?"

I shook my head. "No, not at all."

"Well, then, looks like you're ready." He smiled. "Let's deliver some babies." I laughed. "Now, Michonne and Daryl, I'm going to need both of your help. Once I get the babies out, I'm going to hand each one to you so put these surgical gloves on." He pointed to a box, they both did what he said.

"I'm making the incision now." SIddiq informed me. I nodded and kept my head up, I didn't want to look. "Now, I'm making the second incision into your uterus." I took a deep breath. "I've got it open. I feel a leg and now I'm going to slowly and gently pull it out."

I was getting very worried, I just want everything to be okay with my babies.

"Okay, I got one." SIddiq said. "It's a girl." He said. I smiled excitedly and looked down. She was really small. "I'm cutting the umbilical cord now. By the way, they must be fraternal because they have separate placentas and umbilical cords." I watched him hand my baby girl to Michonne. "I'm going to get the other baby out now." He stated. "I've got a leg, I'm getting them out."

I waited again in anticipation.

"Okay, well, looks like you have one of each." Siddiq smiled. "It's a boy."

I laughed. "Oh my God." He cut the umbilical cord and removed that placenta as well. He handed my baby boy to Daryl. I was a little worried because he was even smaller. I watched Daryl carefully, he was looking down at his son. I smiled at the two of them. I wonder what he's thinking?

Siddiq stitched up my incision. Then, he started taking care of my babies, he washed them off then put them in little incubators and hooked them up to machines. "You're going to have to stay here for at least three days." Siddiq informed me. "I need to keep an eye on you. And it will take six to eight weeks for you to fully recover so after that you have to make sure someone is there to help you." He glanced at Michonne and Daryl.

Michonne nodded. "Of course."

Daryl didn't say anything.

"And we're going to have to keep an eye on the little ones as well." Siddiq said. "They were born three weeks early so they are premature. We should keep them for maybe two weeks, at least."

I was feeling nervous about the babies. I just kept my eyes on them the whole time Siddiq was talking to me. I didn't get to hold them yet.

"Abby, are you listening to me?"

"Can…can I hold them?"

Sidddiq hesitated. "…I'm sorry, Abby. It's too soon. They have to remain in the incubators until they weigh a little more."

"Please." I cried. I was feeling a little emotional. I really wanted to see my babies. "Just for a minute?"

"Listen to the doctor, Abigail." Daryl said roughly. I began to cry. It's not fair, Daryl got to hold one. And he's leaving us. If he's still doing that…

"Tell you what, "Siddiq started, "I can move them so they're right next to you, okay?"

I nodded and wiped at a stray tear.

He moved the incubators closer to me. I stared at my little angels and cried a little more. I tried sticking my hand in using the glove but I still couldn't reach it. I stretched out a little.

"Honey, don't reach." Michonne stopped me.

"Yes, you'll reopen the stitches." Said Siddiq.

I stared at their tiny forms and began crying again. "Are they going to be okay?"

"I promise you I'm going to do everything I can to make sure they are properly taken care of." The doctor said.

"I wish I could hold them so bad." I cried. Michonne rubbed my back.

"Why don't we let Abby get some rest?" Siddiq said.

Michonne nodded. "I'll be back later to check on you, sweetheart." She kissed my forehead. "You did great." She smiled.

She was leaving the room along with Daryl, but I stopped him. "Daryl, wait." I said. "Please stay a minute." He looked reluctant but stayed. I looked at Siddiq. "Could we have a minute, please?"

He nodded and stepped out of the room. Daryl finally came closer to me, he kissed my forehead then sat down on the bed. "How ya feelin'?

I answered his question with a sniffle. I didn't take my eyes off the babies.

"They're gonna be fine." Daryl said roughly.

I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. "I wanna name the girl Lori-Beth." I smiled. He looked at me. "Do you like that?"

He finally nodded. "I love that."

I smiled at him. "You…you can name the boy if you want?"

"Nah. I ain't good with names."

"It's okay, you can name him whatever you want." I nodded and wiped stray tears away.

"Nah, really you do it." He said. "'Sides, I don't have the right."

"What do you mean?" I asked in confusion.

"I told ya already that I was leavin'." He said roughly. "The babies are born and they're gonna be fine."

I looked at him horrified. "But what if they're not?"

"They are."

"Daryl, I need you!" I was crying again. "Don't leave me."

"Ya got the doc and Michonne. I ain't gonna be no good with kids."

"You're still mad at me for telling Carol?" I cried.

"Damn right, I am. Ya lied to me."

"I'm s-sorry." I sobbed. "Please don't leave me!" I tried to grab his hand but he stood up and shook his head. "Don't leave us."

He gave me a look. "Sorry." Then walked out the door and out of my life.

I sobbed uncontrollably. I can't believe he's doing this to me. To us! I heard a weird sound and looked at my babies. "Don't worry, sweethearts, I'm here. Mommy's here. She'll never leave you."

I suddenly noticed Siddiq in the doorway watching me. He had a worried look on his face.

* * *

I stayed in the infirmary for the duration of my recovery. The babies were doing good. Siddiq and Michonne helped me out a lot with them, I can never repay them for it. I was finally able to hold Lori-Beth after two weeks. It was the best feeling in the world, looking down at your beautiful baby knowing that you created this miracle. I was so happy and relieved.

However, Dallas had to stay in the incubator for a longer time, he was smaller and weaker than LB. I remember the day I finally got to hold him. It was the best day of my life, knowing that both my babies were healthy.

I was able to go home with the babies two months later. I was happy to get out of there but…things didn't get any easier. In fact, they got harder. I was having a very difficult time taking care of them by myself. Michonne was helping me for a while but I made her go home. She has Judith and herself(being pregnant) to worry about. Some of the others offered, too, but I turned them down. These are my kids, my responsibility.

As the weeks went by, things got worse. I was exhausted, hardly getting any sleep. The house was a mess. I didn't know how much longer I could hold on before I went insane.

I just got done feeding Dallas and laid him on the couch then picked up LB to breastfeed her. I was unbelievably tired. Dangerously tired.

Before I knew it, I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep. I didn't know how long I was out, but I woke up to the sound of crying. My eyes shot open. _Oh my God! I fell asleep! _I looked around in a panic. Dallas was on the couch crying but where was Lori-Beth? I sat up and realized she was under me. I immediately began to panic. I picked her up. "Are you okay, baby? Are you okay? I'm so sorry! Mommy's so sorry!" She was crying hard. "I held her close and cried myself. I can't do this! I'm a bad mom!

* * *

I heard the door open and footsteps come into my house, but I stayed where I was in the corner. It was Carol and…Daryl? They rushed over and picked the babies up that were crying on the couch. They still hadn't noticed me. I saw Carol looking around.

"Abby?" She called.

"Over here." I said quietly. They both turned to me.

"Abby, what are you doing?" Carol came over to me holding LB. Daryl had Dallas. He doesn't deserve to touch his children.

"I-I fell asleep while feeding her." I sobbed. "When I woke up, she was under me. I'm a bad mom." I cried hard.

"No, you're not a bad mom." Carol said. "Look, she's fine, see." She showed me LB.

I breathed heavily. "I can't do this." I cried. "I was wrong. All they do is cry and they don't sleep. As soon as I calm one down, the other starts. Dallas wants to eat then LB needs changed. I don't have time for anything." I sobbed. "I haven't slept in days or even had time for a meal. It's been weeks since I've showered. I can't do it anymore." I covered my eyes with my hands and cried.

"Abby, hasn't anyone been helping you?" Carol asked me.

I took a minute to answer. "Michonne was here but I made her leave a few weeks ago. She's pregnant and has her own stuff to take care of. These are my kids, my responsibility."

"Everyone needs help, Abby." She told me. "You don't take care of yourself, then you won't be able to take care of them at all." There was a brief pause. I started to calm down. "Why don't you take a break? Go take a shower and get some sleep. Then, I'll make us a nice, hot meal. Sound good?"

"No." I shook my head. "I can't ask that of you. They're like little demons."

Carol smiled. "It's okay. I want to." I looked up and took notice to the way Daryl was looking at me. It was like he was looking at a stranger. "Come on." Carol helped me up.

I headed upstairs to my room but stopped once I got to the top of the stairs because I heard them talking about me. "She's losin' 'er damn mind." Daryl said.

"No, Daryl," Carol snapped, "she's a young, new mom trying to take care of two infants on her own." She paused. "It was hard with just one, I can't even imagine two."

"What are ya sayin'?"

"You need to step up. They're your children, too." Carol said. "If you care about Abby or your babies at all, then you'll be there for her."

There was a long silence.

"I messed up real bad, didn't I?" Daryl asked quietly.

I didn't stick around to hear her answer.

I took a quick shower then got right into bed. I swear I could sleep forever right then.

* * *

I woke up on my own. It was dark outside. I was still tired but I was feeling better than before. I figured I better get up, I left my babies alone with people they don't know. I trust Carol, obviously, but I know Daryl isn't helping her.

I straightened myself up a little, then headed downstairs. Carol was sitting on the couch holding LB while Daryl was in the recliner with Dallas.

"Feeling better?" Carol smiled at me.

"Yeah." I nodded. "Thank you." I suddenly felt a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry about earlier. Can…can we not tell anyone about that?"

"Of course." Carol smiled at me. "And don't worry about it. You're a new mom with twins. Everyone makes mistakes."

I nodded. There was a brief pause.

"I made pasta." Carol said. "Daryl and I ate already, I didn't want to wake you up. There's a plate in the fridge for you."

"Thanks. I appreciate that." I nodded.

Another awkward silence. Daryl and I locked eyes. I hate him right now.

"Let me go heat your food for you." Carol said. I think she could feel the tension. She put LB in her little crib then went into the kitchen.

"Hey." Daryl finally said to me. I just stared at him. He cleared his throat. "I-I want to apologize. And-and I decided…I'm gonna stay here and help you with the babies."

I took in what he just said and an anger erupted inside of me. "You decided?" I said calmly.

"Yeah." Daryl shrugged like it was nothing. I could kill him right now, that's how I angry I was with him.

"Nope, that's okay." I finally said. I took Dallas from him. "I'm better, I just needed some sleep. You can go now." I rocked Dallas. Daryl was giving me a strange look.

"Abby, I said I'm gonna stay and help you. It's okay now."

"No, it's not." I snapped. Then, I calmed down a little because I didn't want to yell in front of the babies. "_You _walked out on _us. _You don't get to just walk back in here like everything is okay. YOU don't get to decide ANYTHING. These are _my _children. I took care of them for months pretty much myself."

"I know and I'm sorry." Daryl spoke quietly. "But I wanna help now."

"Oh, you wanna help?" I raised my eyebrows. I could slap his face. I put Dallas in his crib and grabbed a piece of paper that I wrote needed supplies on, it was about as long as my arm. "You wanna help? Here!" I threw the list at Daryl. "That's a list of supplies that's _just _for the babies! So, if you really wanna help, get your ass out there and get your children what they need." I snapped.

Daryl stood up slowly. He gave me a sort of sad look then nodded. I wanted to slap him even more for being so calm. He slowly walked out the door taking the list with him.

I sighed angrily and shook my head. I saw Carol staring at me. "He shouldn't have went out there in the dark, it's more dangerous."

I sighed. "Well, that's his problem. He didn't have to leave right now."

"Abby." Carol said.

I gave her a look. "Do you think I'm wrong?"

"No. You're right about everything you said." She walked closer to me. "But he wants to make up for what he did to you. He feels bad, he told me."

"Well, why didn't he tell me that?"

"He will." She said. "And you'll forgive him."

"Hmm." I raised my eyebrows. "We'll see about that."

I ate the dinner that Carol made for me. I told her to stay the night here because it's late and she shouldn't travel back to the kingdom in the dark.

We just put the babies to bed. I was so thankful that we were able to get them to sleep. "You can go to bed if you want. I want to wait for Daryl to get back." I told her. "I'll be fine."

"You sure you don't want me to wait with you?"

"No, it's okay." I smiled. "I need to talk to Daryl. I can't promised I won't hit him, though."

She smiled. "Goodnight, Abby."

"Night."

* * *

I was pretending to read a book when I heard Daryl come in. He was standing there at the door, I could feel his stare. I finally glanced up at him. He was holding one of those huge garbage bags and it was filled. I wanted to smirk. Of course he would find things.

He cleared his throat and made his way over to me. "I got everythang 'cept for a few items."

"Good." Was all I said.

"I…I didn't know there was so many different sizes of diapers."

I raised my eyebrows at him. "Wait until you have to change one." I said. "Sometimes, Dallas has explosive diarrhea. I'll be sure to save that one for you."

Daryl made a face of disgust, then quickly changed it. "so…you named him Dallas?"

"Yup."

"I like it." He smiled. "It suits him." Then, his smile faded. There was a pause. "…we gonna talk?"

"About how you left your family?" I said roughly.

"Yeah." He put his head down.

I shook my head and was beginning to feel angry again. "How…how could you do this to me…again? To LB and Dallas?"

"I don't know." He said without looking at me. "I don't know."

"Well, you better know." I snapped and sat up a little. "You don't know how bad I want to slap you right now."

"Then, do it." He said. "You wanna hit me, go ahead."

"Why? So, you can hit me?"

He glared at me. "I never laid a hand on you. Ever."

"No. But I thought you were going to _that_ night." I said calmly. I really did think he was going to hit me. "You scared me, you know? You can't be like that around the children. I won't let you."

"It won't happen again."

I paused. "Do you want to be here, Daryl?"

"Ain't I here?"

"No, I mean…do you want to be with _me_?"

We made eye contact. "Yes." He said.

I was happy inside but also scared. He said that before but he left me again, anyway. That has to stop. If he's serious about this then he can't run off like that anymore. He stays. "Well, then," I cleared my throat, "you got some stuff to work on." I switched positions. "First of all, no more leaving me. Us." I corrected myself. "You can't keep doing that. If you say you're staying, then you're staying. You're either at or with me? There is no other option. Got it?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Yeah." He nodded.

I sighed. "And you need to help me with the babies. It's hard, I'm not gonna lie at all. Somedays, I'm so tired I could just…" I shook my head. "But with both of us, it will be a hell of a lot easier."

He nodded.

I let out a laugh. "You think you know but just wait. You're in for a rude awakening."

Daryl sat back. "Well, don't say that." He joked.

"I'm only telling the truth."

"I'm gonna do all that I can." Daryl said. "That's a promise."

I was quiet for a minute. He better not be lying to me again. I can't take anymore of that. He's hurt me so much already. At least I have grown up from the other times, though. He's always the angry one, but this time it was me. I think I set him straight. I wanted to smirk. He looked like a little boy getting yelled at by his mom when I was yelling at him earlier.

"So…you forgive me?" He asked.

I gave him an almost annoyed look. Then, I nodded. "Yeah, I forgive you."

He gave me a small smile and came over to me. He kissed me slowly. I have to admit, I missed his touch so much. "Let's go upstairs." I said. I winked at him.

His eyes lit up and he gave me a small smile. He grabbed my hand and helped me up and we headed upstairs.

Just as we were getting started, we heard one of the babies crying. My shoulders slumped. Daryl and I shared a look of disappointment. Then, I had a thought. "Your turn." I grinned from ear to ear. He gave me a look but then smiled. I watched him leave our room. I rolled over on the bed and smiled.

_I got my tough guy back._

* * *

**Hello everyone! Happy Memorial Day! Abby really set Daryl straight! :o So tell me...what do you think of the names of the twins? Also, why do you think Abby picked the name Dallas? The answer is in a previous chapter ;) Please leave a review!**


	17. Holding Onto You

"Hey." I said sitting the tray of food on the floor. "I haven't talked to you in a while, and I wanted to come see you before I left."

"Where are you going?" Negan asked me.

"On a run with Daryl." I stated. "It's the first time I've been out pretty much since the babies were born. Now that they're a little older, I can start going out again and helping out."

"Hmm." He said. "Daryl?" He smirked at me. "He's the baby daddy, isn't he?"

I blinked a few times. Then, I gained some confidence. "Yes, he is." I crossed my arms over my chest. "What do you have to say about it?"

"Oh shit." He laughed. "I always knew you liked him."

I gave him a confused look but then shook that thought. "Anyway, I don't know when we'll be back. We're hoping not to be gone too long. We have children to get home to."

Negan laughed again. "Damn. I didn't think he had it in him."

"Well, he did." I answered quickly. "Apparently, you don't."

He stopped and gave me a serious look. I have gone cold towards him ever since my dad died. I don't know why. I guess maybe I was just getting sick of his bullshit. Plus, I sympathize with Maggie a little more because I have love now.

However, I felt a little embarrassed from my sudden outburst. "I'll see ya later." I said quickly and walked out the door.

* * *

"So, we need lightbulbs, tape and extension cords?" I asked. I was sitting on top of a wall eating an orange. We stopped to take a break and look over the map.

"Yeah. And any other supplies we see." Daryl stated.

"Well, this shouldn't take long." I hopped down off the wall. "You can find that stuff pretty much anywhere."

"Yeah, 'cept we cleared out every store fer miles."

I finished shoving a piece of orange in my mouth right before Daryl said that. I looked at him and my eyes went wide. "Seriously? Every one?"

He shrugged. "Pretty much. Give or take a few but…I don't want to risk going out of our way if they don't have what we need."

I thought for a minute. I passed plenty of places when I went on that run a while back. Still, they are a little far. "There's a factory." I said.

Daryl looked at me. "Where?"

"I saw it when I went on that long run last year." I made a weird face. "It is a little bit of a distance…but I think it's our best bet." I showed him on the map.

He hesitated. "…yeah, let's do it." He nodded. I smiled.

"You listened to me." I said sweetly then kissed him. He smirked making me laugh then slapped my bottom. I smiled.

* * *

As Daryl and I were making our way to the factory, we were talking about things that the twins do and laughing. "The kid won't leave me alone." Daryl said. "I cain't even take a dump without him comin' into the bathroom."

I laughed hard. "He loves his daddy." I smiled. "Maybe he thought you needed help in there."

He snorted.

"He helps me out all the time. He's mommy's little helper."

"Yeah, he's good kid." He said. "At least he listens. Lori-Beth don't listen to a damn thang I say."

I laughed. "Just like her mom."

"Yeah, you difficult women." He grabbed me and kissed me several times on my cheek making me giggle. He gave my bottom another slap.

"You better stop that." I said.

"I thought ya liked when I did that."

"I do. That's the problem. We might have to take another break." I giggled. He smirked.

* * *

We stood outside the factory. It looked bigger than what I remembered. "This is the right place, right?"

"Yeah, that's it." I stared at it. "This place is gonna be hard to check. I bet it's real dark inside." I dug my good flashlight out of my bag.

"It'll be fine." Daryl said getting his crossbow ready. "Let's go."

We ran around the building looking for an entrance. We found one but couldn't get it open. I spotted a door up on the side of the building and pointed at it. We had to climb up several stairs before we got to it.

Daryl broke the door open. "Give it a minute." He said.

We looked inside, it was really dark. "Alright, we stay together." I nodded.

We went inside. I brandished my dad's gun around.

"This place is huge." I said shining my flashlight around.

"Yeah. Let's try to make this quick."

We walked around checking in rooms. There were boxes everywhere. This is going to take forever. We started from the front of the room and went back. We ended up on the lowest level of the building. After what seemed like forever, I found a box of lightbulbs. "I found the lightbulbs." I called to Daryl.

"Good cuz I got some cords."

"Great. Now we just need the tape." I smiled.

"I saw some rolls on top of that shelf." Daryl stated.

I looked where he pointed and sat the box I was holding on the ground. "I can get up there. Gimme a boost." Daryl helped me up and I climbed to the top.

"Careful." He said.

"I'm just gonna throw them down to you." I said. I grabbed a few rolls and dropped them, waiting each time for Daryl to catch them before throwing more.

"Alright, that's eight." Daryl stated. "I thank that's good enough."

"Okay. I'm comin' down." I put one foot down and carefully climbed down the shelf. Once I was close enough, Daryl helped the rest of the way.

"We good?" Daryl sighed.

"Looks like it." I said looking around. This place was honestly kind of creepy. "Let's get outta here."

"Yes ma'am." He turned and I slapped his ass. "Woah." He said.

"Sorry, I had to." I smiled. "My Darry berry has a nice ass."

"What I tell ya 'bout callin' me that?" He narrowed his eyes at me.

I giggled. "Aw, Darry berry doesn't like to be called Darry berry." I pinched his cheek.

"Alright. Enough of that." He said and pushed my hand away. He still smirked, though.

"Okay. Now take me home and fuck me."

"Yes ma'am." He raised his eyebrows and grinned one of his rare grins.

I laughed and turned to the door, turning the knob. There were walkers outside the door. I gasped and pushed on it to keep them out. "Shit!" Daryl ran to help me.

We tried as best we could but there were too many.

"Get back!" Daryl said. We both got off the door and ran. The walkers poured inside. We ran around trying to find an exit. We reached one but it was blocked from the outside.

"What now?" I said frantically. Daryl looked around in a panic.

"There!" He pointed. We ran to an opening. My bag got caught on a lever or something so I lagged a little behind Daryl. I finally got it off causing the lever to pull down and then it broke off.

"Come on!" Daryl said. I ran towards him but a gate came crashing down between us. I gasped and my eyes widened. I guess that's what the lever was. "Abby!" Daryl ran over to me and tried lifting the gate, he wasn't having any luck with it. I looked back at the walkers approaching. There's no way I'm getting out of this. Daryl didn't give up with the gate, though.

"Daryl." I stopped him. He looked at me. I shook my head.

"No." He said.

"Daryl." I said again but more calm this time. We touched each other's hands and stared into at each other's eyes. _Is this the last time we will see each other? _I looked to the left of me and saw a sign that said _restrooms. _I took a look back at Daryl then ran for the bathrooms. I kicked a walker that was close by then stabbed another in the head. I went inside the closest one, which was the men's room, and locked the door. I quickly looked around for windows, there wasn't any. I could hear yelling outside and knew Daryl was trying to lead the walkers away. I could hear some of them banging on the bathroom door.

After a while, I couldn't hear him anymore. I could only hear walkers at the door. Probably too many for me to take on myself. I sat on the floor with my knees to my chest. _How am I ever going to get out of this one? _

* * *

I stayed in that bathroom for a long time being as quiet as possible. I figured that was my best bet, eventually they would have to get bored and leave. I just hope Daryl is okay.

I stayed in there a little bit longer, I was hearing less and less noise. I decided to take a peek outside. I got up and opened the door ajar, I stabbed the first walker in the head. I quickly counted the others, there were about six. I can handle six. I threw the door open, killed another walker and threw it at the others to slow them down. I was back against the wall. The next one in line came at me, I kicked its leg causing it to go down then stabbed it. The last four were coming at me. "Damnit." I can't use my gun, the sound will just draw more. I ran into a stall and closed the door. They stood out there and banged on it. I crawled underneath the other stalls and quietly got out without them noticing. I ran out the door. Peeking around the wall, I saw that there was still a big number of walkers banging at the gate.

I quickly and quietly ran back the way we came. Maybe I can go back up and climb down the fire escape like we came up.

The only problem was…it was super dark now because I lost my flashlight. I slowly made my way around. I couldn't see shit. I was afraid to call for Daryl in case any walkers were nearby and heard me. I'm just going to have to wing this the best I can.

I was breathing pretty heavily. I quickly looked around a corner…I was good. There shouldn't be any walkers up this far, they can't climb stairs.

I finally made it back to the first room where we entered. I took a deep breath and headed for the fire escape. Climbing down quickly but carefully, I looked around just before hitting the ground. There was no sign of anything…or anyone.

"Daryl." I called. "Daryl."

No answer.

"Damnit." I sighed. It was beginning to get dark, too. We should have been back by now. I suddenly had a scary thought. I hope Daryl is around and not still inside! I don't think he would do that. I think that was the whole point of him leading the walkers away. I nodded. He has to be out here somewhere. _But where? _

* * *

I tried to think about where Daryl would be. After a while, I wanted to kick myself. _I'm such an idiot! _Daryl is a tracker! The best way to find a tracker is to let a tracker find you.

I stayed in the woods, I figured that was my best bet. I tried my best to leave footprints in the dirt. I sure hope we find each other soon, I really don't want to spend the night in the woods alone. That thought crumbled away when I saw a cabin or something up ahead. I ran to it.

I looked in the window, I couldn't see anyone. I whistled using the call Daryl taught me, he could be in there himself. He never came, though. I banged on the door waiting to see if any walkers came in sight. They never did, so I figured I was good. I opened the door and went inside checking all the rooms. It was clear. I sighed and finally sat down throwing my bag on the floor.

Just then, my stomach growled. "Let's see what we have in here." I started digging through my bag.

* * *

I made a fire in the fireplace a while ago and was sitting by it. It was a cold night. I don't like this, I don't like it at all. I thought for sure Daryl would have found me by now. I'm starting to really worry.

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, I heard a noise outside. My eyes widened and my hand immediately flew to my gun. I stood up quietly and made my way to the window, I peeked out but couldn't see anything. I had my gun up.

Just then, I heard a whistle and it was like every muscle in my body relaxed. Then, I got extremely excited. "Daryl?" I said.

"Abby?" I heard his voice. I threw the door open and ran to him jumping into his arms. I heard him let out a small laugh. I wrapped my arms around his neck holding onto to him like I was never going to see him again. We kissed each other.

Finally, he set me down. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I wiped at a stray tear. "Are you?" He nodded. I exhaled sharply.

* * *

Daryl and I laid in the bed next to each other. I had my arm around him and my head on his chest. His arms were wrapped around me. He kissed my forehead.

"I thought that was the last time I would see you." I said.

"It wasn't. I found ya, didn't I?"

"I knew you would." I looked up at him.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there, though." He said. "I waited fer ya fer a long time but a herd came by and I had to go."

I nodded. "It's okay. I'm just so glad you're alright."

He was quiet for a minute. "I guess we gotta go back out tomorra then?"

"What do you mean?" I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"We lost all the supplies we found."

"Says you." I smiled. He gave me a weird look. "I stuffed the cords and the tape in my bag…but r.i.p. those lightbulbs."

"I got the lightbulbs in my bag." Daryl said.

I looked at him and grinned from ear to ear. "What? Really?" He nodded. "Great! Now we can just go home."

"Yeah, we can leave first thang if ya wanna?"

"Yeah." I laid my head back on my tough guy. We were quiet for a minute. "Let's do it again before we go to sleep."

"Yes, ma'am."

I giggled while getting on top of him.

I started unbuckling his belt then undoing his jeans. He pulled my shirt off next. I smiled at him and we kissed each other. This man always made me so horny. We threw each other's clothes off. Daryl planted kisses down my neck and down to my chest making me feel whole again. I let out a moan.

I tried to sit back up but Daryl grabbed me and rolled us over. _Well, this is new. _He laid me down and kneeled in front of me. He continued kissing my neck and my chest. "Ah." I said. I had my arms wrapped around his neck.

He started going lower and kissed me down my stomach and down to my sex. I was already so horny. _What is he doing? Trying to torture me?_ "Daryl," I breathed, "you're gonna make me cum before you're even inside me." He looked up at me with his mouth slightly open. _Oh, he looked so sexy. _"Hurry." I then said.

He came back up, spreading my legs for me, then slammed into me. "Ah!"

He kissed my mouth. "Okay?" He whispered in my ear.

"Yeah." I said all breathy. I wrapped my arms around his neck. He kissed my cheek before getting started. He started out slow.

"Ah." I moaned. "Fuck me harder, tough guy." He began moving faster. "Ah. Yes." I said. My moans were getting louder.

"Shh shh." He whispered in my ear. That was it for me. My eyes rolled to the back of my head and my legs shook as I panted.

Daryl quickly pulled out of me, making me wince then turned and came on the floor. I gave him a weird look. _He's never done that before._ He noticed me looking at him.

"What's a' matter?"

"What the hell was that?" I still had the same look on my face. He looked confused. "Why'd you pull out?"

"Well…I…we already got twins. I don't want no more kids."

"Ever?"

"Abigail."

"No, I agree with you." I nodded. "I don't want anymore kids right now either. But…I'd have more…someday."

"Alright." He nodded. "Someday. But that day ain't t today." He kissed my forehead. I smiled. I just decided to let it go for now. Then, he laid down and pulled me down next to him. I snuggled into him.

"How come you didn't just cum on me?"

He looked at me. "I didn't thank you'd like it."

I tried to think about it. "I don't know if I would have or not."

"Then, I won't do it."

"Well, I mean…you could try next time."

"Alright. I'll try next time."

I giggled. _He just does what I say all the time, he's such a gentlemen, right? _I thought and rolled my eyes. "It's cold. You're the big spoon." I smiled sweetly. He tightly wrapped his arms around me, then kissed my cheek.

"I love ya, shorty."

"I love you, tough guy."

* * *

We arrived back home around noon the next day. "Thanks, Alice." I said to her. "Were they any trouble?"

"No, of course not." She smiled. "They're little angels."

I heard Daryl snort and I gently slapped his arm then giggled. I watched Alice leave.

"Maybe I should have asked her to stay for dinner." I stated.

"Why?" Daryl stretched and picked up LB. "We already paid 'er in canned goods."

"Because she watched our twins." I said wide-eyed.

Daryl looked like he was thinking for a minute "Good point." He said. I smiled.

"There's my big boy." I smiled and picked up Dallas. "You are getting heavy, little dude." I lifted his shirt and looked at his belly. "Wow, look at this belly." I gently patted it. He laughed, which made me laugh.

"Hey, I thank she gotta fever." Daryl said.

"What?" I was immediately concerned. "What?" I walked over there.

"She feels warm." He felt her forehead. I touched her, too. She was a bit warm.

"Let me get the thermometer." I said. I sat Dallas next to Daryl on the couch.

I heard LB start to cry as I was making my way back over. "Oh, no, don't cry don't cry." Daryl said softly. He lifted her up and blew on her tummy. She started laughing. I stopped and watched them. He smiled at her. "Yeah, that's my little girl." He blew on her tummy again making her laugh some more. Dallas tugged on Daryl's arm. "What ya want me to do that to you, too? Come'er." He lifted him up and did the same to him. Dallas's laugh was so loud. He had the sweetest little laugh. I smiled at them. That was one of the cutest things I have ever seen in my life. And…it made me horny watching Daryl with our kids. I wanted to just fuck him right there on the couch.

"We're gonna have to put the kids to bed early tonight." I said smiling lasciviously at him.

* * *

**Awww...big happy family :) lol please review!**


	18. Sun and Moon

When I woke up, Daryl wasn't next to me. It was morning, though. I checked the time and realized I had overslept. I threw the covers off and got up. I couldn't believe I slept that long, I must have been really tired. Well, we did do it like five times last night. I smiled at the thought.

More and more people were finding out about us and…it was okay. Daryl got a little uncomfortable at times, but I would just hold him and tell him that it would all be okay. I recalled the memory of telling Maggie:

_I had gone to Hilltop to drop off and pick up some other crops and supplies and figured I would talk to her for a minute because there was something I just needed to tell her. _

_"__Can we talk for a minute?" I said to her. "It's important."_

_She gave me a curious look. "Of course."_

_She led us up onto her balcony. I looked around at everything, it was a great view. You could see everything. I guess that's why she picked this room. "I love what you've done with the place." I smiled._

_"__Yeah, things have been better than ever." Maggie said. "Ever since the Sanctuary fell and we haven't had to give up our crops to them anymore."_

_I had almost forgotten about that. Things at the Sanctuary just weren't working out. It was a factory, no good for farming. We brought some of the Saviors to the other communities, the good ones. Some of the others that couldn't work well with others went rogue and we haven't seen them for a long time. And some of them, the ones that weren't fighters, like a lot of workers, died. Some of them were good people. I put my head down._

_"__So," Maggie started, bringing me out of my thoughts, "you wanted to talk about somethin'?"_

_I took a deep breath and turned to her. "I wanted to apologize." She gave me a weird look. I ignored it and continued. "With everything that happened with Negan. What we took from you."_

_"__Abby," Maggie shook her head, "that-that wasn't your fault. Yer dad and Michonne made that choice—_

_"__But I went along with it." I cut her off. "I didn't want Negan to die. I still don't." I shook my head and corrected myself. "But…I didn't fully understand what you were going through, with Glenn." I put my head. "I do now." I thought about Daryl and if anything happened to him. I got a sudden sick feeling in my stomach. "If someone killed— I stopped because I almost said his name. "I just…I would want them dead, too." I nodded._

_She took a minute to respond then nodded. Then, she smiled. "It's Daryl, isn't it?"_

_My eyes went wide for a second. How could she have known? _

_"__I saw you two that day." She answered my unspoken question. "That day with yer dad…" She trailed off. I put my head down. I felt her hand on my shoulder and looked back up. "It's okay. You two are perfect fer each other." She smiled._

_I was a little surprised at her words, but…I wasn't shocked. I finally just smiled. "We really are, aren't we?"_

"Hey, baby." Daryl greeted me as I walked down the stairs. It appeared he was cooking. "I was just about to come get ya. Breakfast is ready."

I stopped dead in my tracks. "You made breakfast?" I asked wide-eyed. I saw that the babies were in their pen.

"Yeah." He shrugged. "What's 'a matter?"

I picked up the twins one at a time and kissed them, then put them back in their pen to play. "Nothin', I'm just a bit surprised." I walked over to him. He grabbed me and kissed me. It happened so fast I didn't even have time to react. _He's acting strange. _I let out a small laugh so he didn't notice that I knew something was up.

"Have the babies eaten?" I asked while sitting at the table. He sat down across from me, already stuffing his food in his mouth.

"I took care 'a everythang." He said while chewing.

"Oh really?" I smirked. I lifted a forkful of eggs to my mouth.

"Yup." He nodded. "They was both fed and changed."

I blinked. "Oh." I was surprised. _What the hell is going on? Why is he in such a great mood and why is he suddenly superdad? _"So…what's your plans for the day? You goin' on any runs or huntin'?"

"Actually," he put the last of his eggs in his mouth then looked at me, "I thought we could do somethin'?"

"Oh yeah? Like what?" I sipped my coffee then winced, it was still too hot so I pushed it aside.

He shrugged. "There's this place I wanna check out. It's a little far but…I just want it to be us."

I hesitated. "…okay? Not that I don't want to go, but why exactly do you just want it to be you and me?"

He shrugged again. "Why not?" He smiled.

I just looked at him then finally smiled back. "Okay." I nodded. "I'll see if Alice can babysit the twins." I sipped my coffee again. "When do you wanna leave?"

"As soon as we're ready." He stood up and grabbed his plate. "Ya done?" He asked me. I nodded. He picked up my plate as well and walked them over to the sink.

"Oh, I can do that." I tried to stop him.

"Nah, it's fine. I got it."

"Daryl, you already made breakfast and took care of the twins." I gave him a look.

He looked at me and shrugged. "Don't you do that pretty much everyday?"

I blinked at him but didn't say anything.

"I got it." He said.

_Okay, something is definitely going on here! _I thought as I sipped my coffee.

* * *

I saw Daryl walking to his bike. "Oh, we're taking your bike?" I asked him.

"Yup." He looked at me. "Unless ya don't want to?"

I shook my head. "Uh, no…that's fine. I'm just a little surprised since we're going to look for supplies."

"I never said we was goin' to look fer supplies." He said without looking at me.

I blinked. "You said you wanted to check a place out."

He looked at me but didn't say anything. He got on his back and started it. "Hop on, sweetheart."

I gave him a weird look but just decided to ignore it for now. I got on his bike and held onto him. Then, we sped away.

* * *

There was definitely something going on. Daryl was acting out of character, and although he was a little different ever since we got together, he's never been like this. What's more is I couldn't help but notice that we passed tons of stores on the way. I have no idea where we are going or what he had planned.

I saw a street sign that read: _Cadbury Road. _It sounded familiar so I looked down at the directions that Daryl handed me. That was one of the ways we were supposed to go.

"Didn't you say you wanted to go down Cadbury Road?" I asked him.

"Yeah?"

"Well, that was back there." I pointed even though he couldn't see it.

"…I lied." He finally said. "Those directions was just to throw ya off."

"What? Why?" I asked him frantically. He never answered me. "Okay, that's it. Pull over!" He didn't listen to me and kept driving. "I swear to God, Daryl Dixon, that if you don't stop this thing, I will jump off." He still didn't stop so I moved my leg like I was going to get off. He finally began to slow down then stopped. I immediately hopped off. He got off, too, then looked at me.

"What's wrong, baby?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Why don't _you_ tell _me_?" I cocked an eyebrow. He gave me a questioning look. "What's going on? What's with all this acting strange and lying?"

"I'm actin' strange?" He said stupidly.

"Yeah, you are." I crossed my arms over my chest. "I wanna know why and I wanna know now or I'm not moving from this spot."

He sighed and walked closer to me. "I didn't wanna say nothin' but…I gotta surprise fer ya." I gave him an inquisitive look. "That's all I'm sayin' right now so get yer ass back on the bike."

I was reluctant, but eventually I walked back over to his bike. He slapped my bottom.

"Don't worry. It's gonna be great." He gave me a quick smile. "You'll see." I held onto him and we started driving again.

* * *

Daryl rode into the woods at some point and stopped his bike outside of a house. It was just beginning to get dark. _Is this his surprise? _We stood there and looked at it. It was high up, like we had to walk up stairs to get to the actual house, and it didn't look too great from the outside.

"So, what do ya thank?" He finally asked me.

I didn't know what to say. "…it's…nice." I said.

He let out a small laugh. "It looks better on the inside, I promise." He grabbed my hand. "Come on." We walked up the stairs together.

Daryl opened the door then looked around inside. "Alright." He lifted me before I could walk inside. I giggled.

"Daryl, what are you doing?" I laughed. "Put me down." He finally set me down in the middle of the room. It was the first time I got a good look at the place. "Wow." I gasped looking around. There was a beautiful living room with a fireplace and huge windows. A piano was next to the fireplace. The kitchen was on the opposite side of the room, and there were two doors on each side that I guessed were bedrooms. I walked over to the huge front windows, you could see everything. There was a lake in the back! I didn't even notice it from the front of the house when we were outside. It all looked so gorgeous with the fall trees and leaves everywhere. I covered my mouth with my hand. I was completely speechless.

I finally turned to Daryl who I realized was watching me. "It's beautiful here." I smiled.

"Yeah?" He walked over to me by the windows.

"Yes." I smiled at him. We kissed each other passionately.

"I'm glad ya like it." He said after we pulled apart. "And happy birthday."

I smiled sweetly at him. "It's not my birthday."

"Ya said you was born in the Fall. It's the Fall." He stated.

I guess that's true. I smiled at him again. "Thank you." I kissed him again. It lasted longer this time. I knew where this was going. "Wait," I stopped him, "I wanna light a fire in the fireplace." I grinned. "Then, go freshen up."

"I'll do it." He said.

"I can do it."

"Nah, it's okay. Just…go do whatever ya said ya wanted to do."

"Okay." I grinned. I wasn't going to argue about who was going to make a fire. I went into the bedroom and immediately kicked my shoes off. Then, I took my shirt and pants off so I was only wearing my bra and underwear and headed into the bathroom. I ran my hands through my hair a little and then scrunched it. It got kind of messed up from the motorcycle ride. Then, I got out my toothbrush and started brushing my teeth.

I looked at myself in the mirror when I was done. "Okay." I took a deep breath and headed back out there.

Daryl was kneeling in front of the fireplace. He had a pretty good fire going. I noticed that his shoes were off and so was his vest. I wrapped my arms around his neck from behind and started kissing his face. "Well, hello." Daryl said. He kissed my mouth. He quickly picked me up like I was nothing and carried me over to the couch. I giggled. Daryl gently laid me down then threw his shirt off and continued kissing me. I unbuckled and undid his jeans in the process. I started sliding them down but he stopped me and took them off the rest of the way. We stopped and just looked at each other for a moment. He is the most beautiful man I have ever laid eyes on. Beautiful inside and out. I smiled at him. He touched my face with his hand. "Yer so beautiful." He said.

"I was just thinking the same thing about you." I said all whispery. He kissed me and we continued what we started. I took my bra off while he slid down my panties. Then, he took his boxers off himself. Now we were completely naked. We were kissing, I was already out of breath. He started going down to my neck. "I wanna ride you." I whispered.

"Alright." He said. He grabbed me and quickly switched our positions. I giggled. I slowly eased myself down onto him. I winced a little but then smiled at him. I began to move. I started out slow then I began to REALLY move. Daryl's hands were on my bottom helping me and holding onto to me. I was moaning and breathing heavily. I was close. I felt one of Daryl's hands leave my bottom then felt a pretty good slap making me cry out. And that was it. I climaxed around him. Daryl held onto me and kept me moving until he finished shortly after I did. I gave him a surprised look as he came inside me.

"You tryin' to get me pregnant again?" I raised my eyebrows but smiled.

"Shit. Sorry." He said. He gently lifted me off him. I winced a little.

"It's okay." I leaned up and kissed him. I smiled. "I'll be right back, tough guy." He slapped my bottom when I got up. I looked back at him with a lascivious smile.

After that, I headed into the bathroom to take care of myself.

* * *

We sat at the table a little later eating dinner. We just had a few canned things that Daryl put here when he was planning this whole thing out. I lit a bunch of little candles around us.

"So," I started to say while taking a bite of my food, "I feel like we always talk about me but not about you."

He looked at me for a minute before saying, "What do ya wanna know?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Tell me about your life before the turn." I sipped my wine.

He raised his eyebrows. "Not much to tell about that."

"Just tell me anything. Like, tell me about your brother, stuff you did. Yeah…how many years apart are you and Merle?"

"Ten." Daryl stated.

My eyes widened a little. "Ten? Wow." I smiled. "Did he look after you a lot?"

"Nah." Daryl shook his head. "I guess he did more than my ol' man ever did but…I was on my own most 'a the time."

I gave him a sad look. "You guys never hung out or anything?"

"Sure, when we got older but…when I was a kid, he was locked up in juvie a lot then when he got a little older he went off to the military."

"Oh." I said. I hesitated. "…well, what about your mom? You never talk about her."

He looked at me then swallowed his food. "She died when I was a kid." He shrugged. "She used to stay in bed a lot. Liked to drink and smoke. Virginia slims." He let out a small laugh. "Used to send me down to the store all the time to get her a carton. That woman never went anywhere, she'd send me or Merle. 'Cept she learned to stop sendin' Merle cuz he'd spend 'er money on bullshit."

I laughed.

"He always got away with it, though, so I tried doin' it the one time. She sent me down to the store to get milk, eggs and cigarettes. Said she wanted 'er change back. I remember it was real hot that day." He took a gulp of his wine. "So, I bought myself a popsicle thanking she'd never notice."

"Uh oh." I said.

"Yup." He nodded. "She counted 'er money and knew immediately that she was missin' some. And I knew not to lie to 'er cuz I'd get beat no matter what, so I just told 'er what I did. She made me go into the kitchen and bring her the wooden spoon. She was that lazy. But she sure did a good job at beatin' my ass. Broke the damn wooden spoon over me."

"Oh my God." I said with a little laugh. "She must have been a strong woman."

"When it came to that she was." He raised his eyebrows. "And once my dad found out, I got beat again."

I looked at him wide-eyed. Then, I grimaced. _No wonder why he's such a tough guy. He must have went through a lot of shit. _I gave him a sympathetic look. "I…wasn't physically punished as a child. My parents didn't believe in that form of discipline." I said. "But one time, I was like thirteen, I think. I did something, I think I said something and my mom smacked my butt and I was like, 'yeah, I think I'm a little too old for that now." I laughed. Daryl let out a small laugh.

We got quiet for a minute. "There has to be something nice you remember about her?" I said referring to his mom.

He thought for a minute. "She used to baby me. Cuz I was the youngest. It got on my nerves, though. Always trying to fix my hair or wipe off my face." He sighed. "Weird thang is…I kinda missed it after she was gone."

I gave him a sad look. I didn't know what to say. What he must have went through with his mom dying, being alone a lot and then the abuse he got from his father. It breaks my heart to think about that happening to him.

"Yeah." Daryl said. Things had gotten a little awkward. "So…what about you? Ya got any funny stories?"

I smiled. "I always have funny stories."

"Tell me somethin' about you an' Carl." He said picking his teeth.

"About me and Carl? Hmm…" I thought for a minute. A memory popped into my head and I laughed a little. "I thought about this when you were talking about when you had to go to the store for your mom." I breathed. "So, when we were little, my mom had to take us to the grocery store with her, and Carl would be in the front of the cart and I was pushing the cart," I started to laugh a little, "so, when my mom would like go to the next aisle over, I would push the cart away and then run and Carl would sit there and cry." I laughed. "Then, I would go back and get him and apologize so he wouldn't tell my mom…and then I'd do it again." I laughed.

Daryl laughed, too. "Yer mean. I thought you guys were real close and nice to each other."

"We were. That doesn't mean I couldn't have some fun and mess with him." I smirked. "It's an older sibling thing. I'm sure Merle would understand if he were here."

"Yeah." Daryl said. I could tell by the look he gave me that his brother did stuff like that to him, too. "So, speakin' of him, what went on with you an' my brother…back at the prison?"

His question caught me off guard. I blinked a few times. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you guys was like…sneakin' around…and stuff."

I gave him a look. "We just smoked some weed." I shrugged. "Remember back at that camp we had at the beginning? You were there. He took my stuff."

"Yeah, he was always takin' people's stuff."

I laughed. "I was afraid he was going to hit me. So, I just let him take it."

"Yeah, he probably would 'a."

I shook my head at what he just said. "Why'd you ask me that anyway? What'd you think we were doing?"

He seemed hesitant. "…he told me you guys was foolin' around."

I cringed a little at the thought of me doing something with Merle Dixon. "And you believed him?"

"…uh…"

"Oh yeah." I said. "Let me just go down the line of the Dixons." I laughed and looked up. Daryl was giving me a weird look. I did a double take. He let out a small laugh when I looked back at him. I raised an eyebrow. _That was weird. _

* * *

Daryl and I laid next to the fire after dinner. I played with the hair on his chin. It was so nice being here with just the two of us. I love this place so much.

"This should be our vacation home." I said out of nowhere.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, it's prefect. And who doesn't want to get away for a while?" I smiled. "I'd say, let's live here, if it wasn't so dangerous to be on our own."

"Yeah, wouldn't that be nice?" He started kissing my face. I smiled. I looked at him in the light from the fire. He really is the most gorgeous thing I have ever seen. I kissed his cheek.

"Let's go to bed." I whispered.

"Yes, ma'am." He lifted me and carried me into the bedroom. I giggled. Daryl closed the door with his foot.

* * *

I woke up to Daryl kissing my forehead. I smiled. He's always up before me. He always was an early riser.

"Come outside when you're ready." He told me. Then, he walked out of the room.

I sat up slowly and stretched. I quickly did my business in the bathroom then threw on some clothes.

I met Daryl outside sitting on a picnic table. "Hey, tough guy." I said.

He turned to me and gave me a quick smile. We kissed each other. I stood next to where he was sitting and looked out at everything. The trees are what gets me. It's just all so beautiful. "I love it here." I smiled. Daryl just nodded. "You sleep good?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "You?"

"Yeah, it was great." I smiled.

"Good." He nodded again. I gave him a weird look without him noticing. _He's acting strange again. _I noticed he was being quiet and he seemed a bit nervous. I put my hand on his back and rubbed a little.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He gave me a look like he didn't know why I asked him that. I just shrugged it off and looked ahead at the leaves blowing in the trees. "So, uh…" Daryl got down off the table. I turned to him. "There's somethin' I should 'a done a long time ago." He reached for something in his pocket. My eyes widened. _Is he about to do what I think he is? _"And…I don't really know how to do this so…here." He put something in my hand. I looked down at it, it was a ring. I looked at him and smiled.

"Are you asking me to marry you?"

He nodded.

I looked down at the ring and smiled again. _Is this really happening right now? _Then, I looked at him. "Yes." We kissed each other. I looked into his eyes once we pulled apart. I handed him the ring so he could put it on for me, smiling the whole time. I looked at my hand with the ring on it. _Well, look at you, Abigail Dixon. _We kissed each other again, I held him tightly, he kissed me three times on my face.

"Let's go inside." I gave him the look. He picked me up without any questions and carried me inside. I giggled.

* * *

I sat at the piano playing a song. We were still naked. Daryl came up behind me and kissed my neck making me smile. "I didn't know ya could play piano?"

"Yeah." I said. "Wanna play with me?"

"I-I don't know how."

I'll show you." I smiled. "Here." I scooted over so he could sit down. "Put your hands on mine." He did what I said. I started playing. "See, you're playing." I giggled. I turned back around. "You are the sun. You are the moon." I sang.

"You can sang, too?"

I smiled. "You like it?"

"You sound beautiful."

I just smiled again and continued playing.

"Sat outside in the falling rain. I'm here again and I'll never let you down." I looked at Daryl. He kissed me. "Hold myself to the rising flame. I will rise again and I'll never let you down." I giggled.

"Keep goin'." Daryl said.

"I set myself on fire against the falling night. Set myself on fire so I could see the light. If I stand out in the open I can find my way. I'm hoping you can stay the night into the day." I turned to look at Daryl for this part. "You are the sun, You are the moon. And I'll never let you down." I turned back to the piano. "You are the sun, You are the moon. And I'll never let you down. You are the sun, You are the moon."

I loved this moment so much, I could cry. I let out a small laugh then continued. "Girls get lost in the falling dark. But I hit my mark and I'll never let you down. Girls get lost but I found the road. I'm not alone and I'll never let you down." I paused for a minute because I was getting a little emotional. "I set myself on fire against the failing light. I set myself on fire so I could beat the night. If I stand out in the open I can find my way. I'm hoping you can stay the night into the day. You are the sun, You are the moon. And I'll never let you down." I stopped playing and just sang. "You are the sun, You are the moon. And I'll never let you down. You are the sun, You are the moon." I finished.

Daryl kissed me. "That was beautiful. Just like you."

I couldn't contain myself any longer. My lips spread into a wide grin. It's been so long since I have sang. I remember Carl told me in that letter to start singing again. I smiled. "Let's go to bed."

"Yes ma'am." He whispered.

* * *

**Oh My God! :O Tear haha Please review!**


	19. Anything But Ordinary

I stared up at the trees and could feel the sun on my skin. Summer time already. It's crazy how time flies. Speaking of times, they have really changed. Alexandria kind of stopped helping the other communities; we were all looking out for ourselves now. It's been a long time since I have even seen the others. I heard Maggie left a while ago to join Georgie's community, she seems to like it there. Jesus has been holding the fort down at Hilltop along with Tara. Carol and Ezekiel run the kingdom and Michonne, I and the rest of the council run Alexandria now. I was okay with that.

However, I was missing my tough guy. Daryl has been wanting to go away for a while on a hunting trip, but he didn't want to leave me alone with the twins. Now that they are six years old, he finally got to go. He's been gone for a while, though. Longer than he said he would be. A small part of me is worried, but I know deep down that he is fine.

I wanted to get him a gift or something before he left. So, I went out the one day while he was watching the twins. I searched in so many stores, gift shops, etc. but there was not one thing that screamed DARYL to me. I sighed. It was hard, I really wanted to get him the perfect gift.

As I was making my way home, I found myself in the woods. I heard growling and immediately turned in the direction it was coming from. There was a big dog, it was growling at me. I was frozen in fear. That thing could probably rip me apart! It lunged at me and I quickly shot it. I didn't want to, but I had to. I stared sadly at the dead body on the ground. Just then, I heard whimpering. I walked over to a bush and there was a puppy laying under it. I gasped. That dog was probably its mom! I became very saddened. Then, I got the most fantastic idea ever! Daryl has always wanted a dog! He can take him with him on his trip and he won't have to be lonely! This is the perfect gift. I quickly snatched him up and took him home. I smiled. I remember the look on his face when—

The sound of gunshots snapped me out of it. I quickly looked around and at everyone else.

"Where's Judith?" Rosita said.

"What?" I said wide-eyed. I looked around, she was no where in sight. I reached for my dad's gun and it was gone. I immediately became angry. _Damn that girl! She's always taking my gun! _"Come on." I said to everyone. "Judith!" I yelled running through the woods.

"Judith!" Rosita called.

"Jude!" Aaron yelled.

"Jude!" Yelled Eugene.

"I'm here!" I heard her little voice. I ran to her first.

"Are you okay?" I knelt down. I heard someone whimpering and realized that my sister wasn't alone. There were five people there. Four women and one man. I immediately pulled my sister behind me. Aaron and Eugene began patting them down and taking their weapons.

"I heard them calling." She said. "They needed our help."

"Our rig, it got overrun by sickos." The man said. "We owe our lives to Miss Grimes here."

I glared down at my sister. She looked up at me. "They still need our help."

"We can't." Rosita said to her. "You know that."

"Yeah, she knows." I grabbed my gun from her hands. "And what did I tell you about this? This is not for you, okay?" I gave her a stern look. She just looked at me. I felt a little bad so I spoke softer. "Use your sword next time, it's quieter and won't attract walkers."

She nodded at me.

"Hey, uh," the man started to say, we turned our attention back to them, "I dabbled in the culinary arts, uh, once upon a time ago, and, uh, I'm Luke, by the way. You know, with a little bit of help, I can help whip this buck into a mighty fine osso buco."

I cocked an eyebrow at this guy.

"Stew." Eugene said holding the deer. "We make stew. More mileage for the masses."

There was brief silence. "There are more of you?" One of the women asked.

"Way more, with walls and—

"Judith." I scolded cuting my sister off.

"Incoming." Another one of the women said. Well, I should say girl. She looks younger than the rest of them. She was pointing at some walkers. Laura, Eugene and I took care of them.

"There's more on the way." Laura stated. "We gotta get outta here."

We were all hesitant. We can't bring in anymore people.

"They need food and water and medicine." Judith looked at me. I stared down at her and then up at the approaching walkers. "If they don't go, I don't go." Judith said.

I gritted my teeth in anger. She has mom's stubbornness. I looked up and realized everyone was looking at me. _Why are they looking at me? It's not up to me._

I looked at Rosita and Aaron giving them an annoyed look. "Come on." I gestured to the new people.

"Yeah?" The Luke guy looked excited and chuckled.

"Come on." Was all I said. I didn't try to hide the irritation in my voice. _Michonne's going to be pissed._

* * *

We stood outside the walls of Alexandria.

"Again, I feel the need to remind you that what we are doing is in direct and flagrant violation of the current security protocols." Eugene said.

"Yeah, we know." Rosita said.

The gates opened.

"Can't be worse than Jones Springs." One of the people said. "Just like Jones Springs couldn't be worse than Coalport."

"Oh, God." Another said. "Coalport was a fossilized city of shit."

I raised an eyebrow while listening to their conversation. I studied these people. They weren't just ordinary people, they were anything but ordinary.

"You'll be safe here." Judith said grabbing the one woman's hand. "I promise."

I wanted to smile at her innocence but another part of me was annoyed and worried about it.

"This is Alexandria." Judith said. "This is home."

I sighed and we walked inside with the new people. The one woman had a head injury and was immediately taken to the infirmary.

Michonne rode up on a horse. "Whoa." She stopped it. She climbed down and turned to me. "You wanna tell me what this is?"

I stood straight and cleared my throat. "Five unknowns all clean, one headed to the infirmary."

"All clean? You sure about that?" Michonne questioned us.

"Indeed." Eugene said. "They're whistle-worthy, clean as a-wise."

Michonne gave me a look.

"They surrendered their weapons willingly and submitted to standard frisk procedure." I said.

"And why are they here?" Michonne said. I felt a little nervous.

"My call." Aaron said.

Michonne turned to him. "It's not your call to make."

I don't know why he felt the need to stick up for me? Then again, it wasn't really my call either, we all kind of decided.

"I decided." Judith stepped up. "They needed help."

Michonne crouched down a little and spoke softly. "Judith, you know the rules." She stood back up and looked at us. "You all do." She said more roughly.

"Thing is, they're here now, and one of 'em's badly hurt." Aaron said. "Siddiq's checkin' her out, but look, no disrespect, but maybe their fate is something we should decide together."

I looked up at the sky. "It'll be dark soon."

"First thing tomorrow, we can bring them before the council for a vote." Laura nodded.

"Okay." Michonne finally agreed. "Put them in holding."

"Come on." DJ began to take them away. "Let's go."

"Abby." Michonne called me. "I wanna talk to you."

_This can't be good. _I sighed and followed her.

"What is wrong with you?" She asked me. "You of all people know that we can't take in strangers."

I was already annoyed. "Look, Judith found them and wouldn't leave without them. What was I supposed to do? Leave her out there?"

"Judith is a child." She said. "You know the rules. They're not staying."

I swallowed. "Okay, I know your say in above everyone else's but I'm part of the council, too, and we're voting on it." She was about to say something but I spoke first. "And don't talk to me like a child. I'm twenty-seven and—

"And you still think like an eighteen year old." She said slowly and smirked. I just stared at her. "They're not staying."

I was irritated by her. Maybe Judith got her stubbornness from her and not mom? "It's gettin' late. I need to get home to the twins." I said and walked away.

* * *

"Hi, mommy!" LB said and ran to me as soon as I walked in the door.

"Hi, baby." I smiled and picked her up. Dallas hugged my leg, I rubbed his head.

"So, what did you guys do in school today?" I put LB down.

"We colored and talked about space!" LB said excitedly.

"You did?" I grinned. "Did you learn anything?"

"No." They both said.

I let out a small laugh. "Of course." I noticed Dallas was being kind of quiet.

"What's for dinner, mommy? I'm hungry." LB asked me.

I laughed and went to start dinner.

* * *

"Come here." I gave LB a hug and a kiss then tucked her in. I moved over to Dallas's bed and hugged and kissed him. He looked sad. "Everything okay, bud?" I asked him.

He was quiet for a minute, I could tell he wanted to say something. "…when's dad comin' home?"

I gave him a sad look and pushed his hair back. "I don't know, baby. I wish I did." I glanced over at LB, she looked like she was about to cry. They both really miss Daryl and it just about breaks my heart. I didn't want to tell them that he would be home soon because I really didn't know when he would be home. And…I miss him, too.

* * *

"As you can probably tell from our turnout here, it's been a long time since we've seen new faces inside these walls." Aaron said. "We're a fair community of decent-minded people, but we are not soft. And that's not going to change today. So let's begin. Which one of you is the leader?"

"What makes you think we have one?" The one woman said.

"Did you know each other before?" I asked.

"No." Luke answered. "It was, uh, Magna and then Yumiko, uh, first, and then, uh, Connie and Kelly and then-and then me and then Bernie." He inhaled deeply.

"I'm sorry." I said.

"Bernie was the one that we lost yesterday." Luke continued. "There were others, of course. But, like Bernie, they just…" He started to get choked up. "They didn't, uh They didn't make it."

"Who were you before?" Aaron asked.

"Me? Before all this?" Luke questioned. "I was a music teacher."

"Waited tables at a truck stop." Magna said.

The one woman, Connie, was speaking in sign language.

"She says she was a journalist, but she's just being modest." Kelly answered. "She exposed a bunch of sleazeball politicians and put them behind bars."

I smirked a little but then became serious. "And you?" I was the one to ask her.

"Well, I was in high school," she started to say. "Stressin' about stupid shit that felt like the end of the world."

"Me too." I smiled. I kind of like this girl.

"And who are you now?" Laura asked them.

"A fighter." Magna answered.

Connie signed but then Kelly answered for her. "She says she's my guardian angel, but, really, it's the other way around."

"I guess I'm still a music teacher?" Luke said. "Um, education never ends, not even in the face of monsters and mayhem."

"What did you do to survive?" Eugene asked.

"What I had to, anything I had to." Said Magna.

Connie signed. "She says she never gave up, but me, I grew up." Kelly said.

"I don't-I don't think I did anything special." Luke said. "I-I don't know what I did to deserve it. Um at-at first, I was just lucky. I was-I was in the right place at the right time, and then, uh, I met the right people." He chuckled. "H-here's the thing, is that it's funny, but before all this, if you saw us all sittin' at the same table at, like, a restaurant, a bar, or something, you'd say to yourself, "Well, hey, I don't know. Maybe these people work together?" He laughed again. " Because we certainly don't have anything in common, except for the fact that we're breathing. And that's a lot nowadays, right?"

I smiled. That was a nice speech. They seem all right, but…I'm not quite sure about Magna.

"Thank you." Siddiq said.

"If that's everything, I'd like to motion for a vote." I said.

"I have a question." Michonne stood up. "As a community, we want to be kind. We want to be generous. We want to be charitable. But, as we know, decisions like the one we are about to make can come with a heavy price." She stood in front of Magna. "Can you show me your left hand?"

"Michonne, what are you doing?" Aaron said.

Magna held out her arm. "You get that at a truck stop?" Michonne asked her after looking at it.

"Screw you." Magna said.

"What is it?" I stood and narrowed my eyes.

"You wanna tell them?" Michonne asked her.

"Michonne, if you have something to say, s—

"It's a prison tattoo." Michonne said cutting Siddiq off. "The four dots are the walls. The one in the middle is you, the prisoner. Hard time."

I heard everyone in the crowd murmuring to each other.

"Look, just because she was a prisoner…" Luke trailed off.

"I can explain." Magna said.

"Oh, you wanna tell the truth?" Michonne said.

"Yes." The woman snapped.

"And you have nothing to hide?" Michonne asked her.

"Nothing." Magna answered.

"Put the knife on the table." Michonne told her. I watched the scene in anticipation. Magna looked hesitant. Eventually, she unbuckled her belt and took the belt buckle off, it was a knife, she slammed it on the table.

I sighed. _Damnit._

"I remember, and I know that you do, too." Michonne said to everyone. "So go ahead. Take your vote. I second the motion." Michonne said and began walking out of the room.

"Hey!" Magna yelled to her. "Can I ask you a question?"

"No." Michonne answered immediately and went outside. I sighed again. _That didn't go well._

* * *

I watched Michonne and Judith outside. Michonne had been training her to use her sword. She was getting good. My little sister is already a badass at ten years old. I sighed. I needed to talk to Michonne about the new people.

I waited until they were done then I approached her.

"I know what you want to talk about." She said to me. She wiped her face on a towel.

"I'm not disagreeing with you." I said. "We don't know them. If you want to send them away, then that's what happens. But…I don't want it to be for the wrong reasons." I looked down. "Being in prison don't mean shit, and you know that." I pointed.

"She's dangerous." Michonne said.

"And how to you know that?" I asked. "Because she was protecting herself? They don't know us either. Tell me one time when you weren't being careful." I waited.

"I just don't trust them."

"And that's fine." I said immediately. "But they could end up being an asset."

"No." Michonne shook her head. "Not after…" She trailed off. I put my head down for a minute knowing what she was going to say. "We can't trust them."

"Them or her?" I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Her." Michonne finally answered.

I smirked. "You know…she kind of reminds me of someone." I looked her up and down. She gave me an annoyed look. It was true, though. Michonne was just like her when we first met her. I walked away.

"Hey, Judy." I saw my sister on the steps outside of her house. "Ya finish your homework?"

"Almost." She said. She hung her head.

"What's wrong?"

She looked up at me. "When are we gonna go on a run? You said you'd take me with you one day?"

I blinked a few times then let out a small laugh. "I don't know, kid. But it's bad out there. It's not something to be excited about."

"But—

"Go finish your homework, kid." I said.

She sighed. "Okay." I smirked and tipped her hat as she walked by. She wears Carl's hat a lot now, he left it for her.

I realized Negan was looking at me from his jail window. "What?" I said.

"She's a good kid." He smiled.

"Yeah." I rolled my eyes. "She is...but she can also be a smartass."

"Wonder where she gets it from?" He smirked.

I smiled back at him. Then, I gave him the finger as I walked away.

* * *

We stood outside the gates early the next morning. The new people were being sent out, and it only felt right for me to be there.

"Sorry, guys." Yumiko said. She was the one with the head injury. "If I knew we were gonna be booted as soon as I recovered, I would've hit my head a bit harder."

"Doc." Luke said to Siddiq. "Thank you. Thank you for your hospitality." He glanced at me, too, and nodded. I nodded back. Then, Luke bent down to Judith's height. "Especially you. Thank you." He said to her. She smiled.

Just then, Michonne rode up on her horse. "Change of plans." She said. "There's a place a lot like this one. The leader might take you in. I'll escort you personally, talk to her."

I gave her a weird look. "You're gonna take them to Hilltop?

Michonne nodded. "With Siddiq and DJ, too. You gotta keep an eye on your patient till we get there." She said to Siddiq.

I thought for a minute. I should go, too. I can use it as an excuse to look for Daryl. As soon as we get them to Hilltop, I can leave and go fine him. I nodded to myself. "I'm going, too." I blurted out.

"Abby, you don't have to." Michonne said. "You can stay here with the twins."

"No." I shook my head. "I should go. I'm the one who allowed them to come back with us." I looked at them. "It's only right." There was a brief pause. I looked back at Michonne. "Just let me say goodbye to Dallas and LB." I nodded.

I started heading towards the house. Judith followed me. "Well, if you're going then I'm going, too." She said.

I looked down at her. "No, you are not."

"But I'm the one who found them." She complained. "It's only right, too."

I stopped and sighed. "Judith, you aren't going and that's final." I started walking again. "Besides, you got school anyway." I noticed that she stopped, so I did too. She was giving me a sad look. I sighed. I know she only wants to help, but she can't. She's just a little kid and it's dangerous out there. "Look, sweetheart...I promise we'll go on that run soon when I get back, okay?" I put my hand on her shoulder.

She was staring at the ground, then finally looked up at me. "Okay."

* * *

**Hey! Hey! Hey! Please leave a review! It would be much appreciated! :)**


	20. Flowers For A Ghost

**Final chapter! O:D**

* * *

"How much further have the patrols cleared?" Michonne asked DJ.

"'Til the Route D river bend." DJ replied. "Their rig's about five miles past that. If their story checks out."

There was a brief pause.

"You'd feel better if you just say it." Michonne said to Siddiq.

"What makes you think I want to say something?" He said.

"I'm not hearing you deny it."

"I was gonna tell you that I'm glad you changed your mind about them." Siddiq said.

"But you think I should've let them stay in Alexandria."

"Well, you're going pretty far out of your way not to."

"He's gotta point." I finally spoke. "I hate leaving the twins, especially with Daryl gone, too."

"You didn't have to come." Michonne said to me. "I told you."

I thought for a minute. "I have my reasons." I said. I saw Michonne glance at me.

"Well, Considering." Said Siddiq.

"Considering what?" Michonne asked him.

"That you like these guys." He smiled.

"Really? That's what I think?" She asked him.

"Uh-huh." Siddq said. "I mean, I'm not hearing you deny it."

"Doesn't mean I trust them."

I sighed. I glanced over at the new people, they were talking to each other in sign language. I wish I knew what they were saying.

"Guys." Kelly said. "Chill. We can roll with this a little while longer. Cool?"

"No, no." Magna said. "It's not cool. I want my damn knives."

"Look, I'm sorry about Magna." Yumiko said. "She can be a bit hotheaded."

"That's one word for it." Michonne said stiffly.

Yumiko hesitated. "She's been on edge since we lost Bernie."

I gave her a sympathetic look. "Was he with you long?"

"Long enough." She replied. Then, she smiled. "He loved getting under Magna's skin. He, um, used to wear this absolutely horrid shirt. It was like looking into creation itself. In paisley. God, it was horrendous. But Magna hated it. She said just looking at it gave her a migraine. So Bernie wore it every day for a week."

I let out a small laugh.

"Honestly, I think she came around on the shirt." She continued. "Just like she came around on him."

"Like family." Michonne said.

We all looked at Michonne after she said that.

"This place, Hilltop." Yumiko said. "It's safe?"

"It is." Michonne answered too quickly. Yumiko looked at me. I nodded.

"What's it like?"

"It's been a while since I've been there." Michonne answered. I put my head down. It's true. She doesn't even know about Maggie leaving.

"Then how do you know it's safe?" Yumiko pressed.

"I promised my daughter that I would get you there, and I will." Michonne said. "You're just gonna have to trust me."

Yumiko looked unsure.

"It's okay." I reassured her. "It's safe, I promise."

* * *

We got to a location in a field where apparently these people were staying. They wanted to collect their supplies. I stopped on my horse and was looking around at everything, it was a dump. There didn't seem to be much left.

"Oh, no." I heard Luke say. I turned to him. "No, no, no, no." He was looking at a broken instrument. "Sickos tore the damn place up." He said. "Look at this place."

"I didn't think it would be this bad." Said Yumiko. She sighed. "Is this all that's left?"

"Hey, whoa." Michonne stopped her horse. "The herd you ran from did all this?"

"No." Magna replied immediately. "A bigger one must've come through here."

I looked around because we heard walkers growling in the distance. I finally hopped down off my horse and made my way closer to where Luke was because I heard him going on about something.

"It has to be here." He said. "It's-It's just got to be here."

"Something wrong?" I asked him with a raised eyebrow.

Connie began signing something.

"No, I'm not telling her that." Luke answered her. "Yes, I have a love of the musical arts, but Connie here does not appreciate my—" He saw what she was signing to me and laughed. "No, it is not a fetish."

I laughed. I mimicked her symbols. "This means fetish?" I laughed again. "Well, now I at least know that."

Luke laughed again. "It's not a fetish." Then, he became serious. "Can you please just help me find it?" He said to Connie. "Please?" She nodded. "Thank you."

"DJ, collect all their weapons." Michonne said.

"Hell, no." Magna said. "We're taking what's ours."

_Uh oh. _I turned my attention towards them.

"No." Michonne said seriously. "I'm not letting my people take five armed strangers into Hilltop." I gave her a weird look. _Wait…is she not coming?_

"Your men?" Yumiko asked. "What about you?"

"I came to see if your story checks out." Michonne said. "It does. Siddiq and DJ will take you the rest of the way. And Abby, if she wants."

"So not only have you not been to this place in who knows how long, you aren't coming with us and we can't have our weapons?" Magna asked.

"You want your weapons, take them." Michonne said. "Then you're on your own out here. You want an escort to Hilltop, a chance at something better, they stay with us."

There was a brief pause.

"I vote for the second one." Luke said. So far, he's my favorite.

"So we're just supposed to trust her if she doesn't even trust us?" Magna said.

"I mean, guys, we-we made it this long." Kelly, to my surprise, said. "I-I say we take our chances out there."

"Nope." Luke said. "Second one." He looked at Connie and signed. "You with me? Second one?"

"Stop it." Yumiko said. "Luke's right. They wouldn't put us back together just to pull us apart again. They wouldn't." She looked to Michonne. "You said we'd be there by morning?"

"That's right." Michonne said.

"Look, I know you don't like her rules I don't, either." Yumiko said to her people. "But we made it out here a long time on our own, with less than this. So, for a real chance for a safe place to live, we can make it a few more hours. Okay?"

There was a long pause, it was pretty awkward. I looked up at the sky. "Sun'll be down soon." I said. "We should find shelter."

* * *

A little later, we took shelter in some abandoned building. it wasn't great, the ceiling was leaking but it would have to do for the night. Their group and our group kind of stayed away from each other. We were talking inside of our groups. I watched Michonne walk away. Siddiq was looking at me. "Something bothering you?" He asked me.

I shrugged. I decided to just tell him. "Michonne." I pointed. "She's gone cold. I understand why, but…it doesn't make it okay."

"She's just got more worries than she used to."

I nodded in agreement. "When are we gonna tell her about Maggie?"

"Soon." He nodded. "I've been waiting for the right time."

"Same. She'll probably be mad either way." I shrugged. Siddq gave me a look. "Let's just talk about something else."

He sighed. Then, he smiled. "How are the twins?"

I smiled back. "They're good. They're little sweethearts but sometimes they can be little monsters." I laughed. He laughed too.

"They're due for a checkup."

"I know." I almost rolled my eyes. _I have got more to worry about than doctor's appointments._

"You should come in too." Siddiq said. "It's been a while since—

We heard a commotion then yelling. We both jumped up and ran. We saw Michonne standing there with Luke. "The hell is going on?" I asked immediately with my dad's gun up.

"T-this is—this is unbelievable." Luke said. "It's utterly unbelievable." He was holding a broken violin or something. My shoulders slumped and I put my gun down. It didn't take long for me to figure out what happened. Michonne must have thought he had a weapon and she destroyed the instrument. "Do you-do you know what this is?" Luke continued. "This is an original Stradivarius, circa 1725.

I rolled my eyes. "Sorry, man." I patted his back as I walked by. I truthfully didn't care. As I was walking away, I spotted Kelly sitting with her sister, Connie. Connie was asleep. "Hey." I said to her. She looked at me. I walked closer to her. "I wanted to properly introduce myself. I'm Abby." I smiled.

She nodded. "Kelly."

There was a brief pause. "I liked what you said earlier. About high school. That's probably one of the most true things I've ever heard."

She nodded. "It all seems so stupid now."

"It does." I agreed. I sat down in front of her. I thought about all the immature things about school. All the immature people too. That's something I seriously didn't miss. I miss the friends I had, don't get me wrong, but all the other annoying people...I'm glad that's gone. "But I think middle school was worse than high school."

She looked like she was thinking. "Nah. I hated high school. Only because I got picked on a lot after I came out."

I blinked a few times. "Oh. You're…a lesbian?"

She nodded. "Does that bother you?"

"No." I shook my head. "Not at all. I just didn't know."

There was a brief silence. Kelly looked like she wanted to say something. "…are you? By any chance…?"

I realized what she just asked me and I almost laughed. "No, sorry." I smiled. "I'm married actually." I held my hand up with the ring on it.

"Damn." She said with a laugh. "I was gonna ask you if you wanted a drink or something when we got to the hilltop place."

I laughed a little. I was actually flattered. "I have some stuff to take care of." I admitted. "But we could some other time, er, as friends." I smiled.

"Cool, yeah." She nodded and smiled back. "Yeah, that'd be cool."

I just smiled.

"So…you said you're married?"

"Yeah." I smiled. I thought about Daryl. _My tough guy. _"We've got two kids. Twins actually."

"Wow, really? How old?"

"They're almost six." I stated.

Her eyes widened a little. "You don't look old enough to have kids that age."

I let out a nervous laugh. "I got pregnant at twenty-one."

"Oh, I see." She rubbed her chin. "Well, we'll all have to hangout sometime."

I nodded. "Oh, definitely."

She smiled. There was a brief pause. "Think I'm gonna turn in."

"Yeah." I nodded. "Me too." I stood up. "Night." I waved at her and walked away.

* * *

The next day, Michonne, Siddiq and I were outside talking. "I'll probably reach Alexandria before you get back to Hilltop, so if you need any supplies, you should take them." Michonne said.

"I'd rather have your company, honestly." Siddiq tried. "Come with us."

I nodded. "You should, Michonne. It's the least you could do after murdering Luke's violin last night." I said to try and help Siddiq.

She let out a small laugh. "It's for the best. You know that."

"You don't have to worry about Maggie, though." I shook my head.

"We can't take the risk. I don't know what she'll do if she sees me."

Siddiq and I shared a look. I nodded at him. It's a good time as any. "Michonne, Maggie's gone." Siddiq said to her. "Took Hershel with her. Jesus runs Hilltop now."

"Where is she?" Michonne asked confused. "And how do you know?"

"She went with Georgie's group." I chimed in. "She told me a while back." She gave me a weird look. I could read her expression. "Sorry, I didn't tell you, it's just—

"Walkers!" DJ yelled. I looked around. There were a bunch headed our way.

"Let's move!" Michonne said.

"Grab your stuff." Magna yelled.

We took care of some of the walkers. After a while, I saw them looking at a walker that had on a really ugly shirt and wondered what was going on. Then, it hit me. That's their friend. The one they were telling us about yesterday. Magna started to cry. I gave them a sympathetic look. Michonne gently put it down. Then said, we had to go.

* * *

We were back on the road headed to Hilltop when two guys from there rode up to us on horses. "We have a message." One of them said. "We have one of yours, Rosita Espinosa. She's been injured."

My eyes widened. "What? She's hurt? What happened to her?"

"Not sure." The other guy said. "That's all we know."

I looked at Michonne. She hesitated. "Let them know Michonne and the others are headed to Hilltop. Tell them we're safe."

The men rode off together.

"I hope she's okay." I said.

Michonne nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

We finally made it to Hilltop and got the others inside with a little convincing of Tara and the other people there. I stopped to talk to Michonne. "Hey, how long you gonna be here?"

She gave me a weird look. "Not sure. Why?"

"Well, I didn't plan on staying. I have some stuff I have to take care of. But Rosita…"

There was a brief pause. "…I'll check on her." Michonne said. "You go ahead."

"Are-are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's fine." She nodded. "Just be careful while looking for Daryl."

"Okay. I—" I realized what she just said and gave her a shocked look. _How did she know? _Then, I just smiled at her. She smiled back. "Thanks." I waved as I headed out.

* * *

I knew exactly where to find Daryl. Well, not exactly but I had an idea. It took a while for me to get there but it didn't take long for me to find him. He walked over with his arms filled with firewood. He didn't see me until he turned. I smiled. He looked surprised but then straightened himself up a little. "Hey, tough guy."

"Hey, shorty." He smiled a little. We walked closer to each other and kissed. That bereft feeling reminding me just how much I miss him. I could cry right then, but I didn't. "What are ya doin' here?" He asked me.

I gave him a weird look. I thought he would know exactly why I was there? The sound of a dog barking pulled me from my thoughts. I saw his dog there and smiled. "Is that my baby?" I asked. I went over to pet him. "He got so big!" I petted him, he was very happy to see me. He jumped on me. "Oh." I laughed.

"Down!" Daryl said immediately to him. The dog instantly got down.

I looked at Daryl. "What did you end up naming him?" I asked while still petting him.

"I didn't."

My shoulders slumped. "So, what have you been calling him?"

"Dog." Daryl stated.

I rolled my eyes but still smiled. "Only you, Daryl Dixon."

He gestured for me to sit down. I sat down on one of the logs in front of the fire. He did as well. "You never answered me. What are ya doin' here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I replied. He just looked at me. I raised my eyebrows. "I've come to bring you back home. You've been out here longer than you said."

"It's nice. Quiet. I like it." He shrugged.

I gave him a surprised look. "It's quiet at home, too, without you. Your children miss you. _I _miss you. LB cries every night. Dallas wanted to come find you. They're waiting for daddy. We all are." I became saddened.

Daryl looked down a little guilty. "How are they?" He asked quietly.

I tried to change my attitude. "LB gets straight A's in school and she never stops talking." I smiled. Daryl let out a small laugh. "Dallas keeps asking when you're going to take him hunting with you. He wants to be just like you. He already looks like his dad." I grinned.

"Yeah, poor kid."

I gave him an annoyed look. I hate when he talks badly about himself. Then, I thought about what he said. "Yeah, you're right, poor kid. He's gonna have to fight the ladies off him when he gets older." I smirked. He snorted. There was a brief pause, then I got up and made my way behind him. "You feeling okay?" I asked him. I started rubbing his shoulders and then down his back. I heard a moan escape from him. "That feel good?"

"Yeah." He said.

I smiled and looked around at his "home." "Is that where you sleep?" I pointed.

"Huh?" He looked. "Oh, yeah, yeah."

An idea crossed my mind and I smiled. I bent down and whispered in his ear, "let's do it right now." I kissed his temple then stood back up and giggled.

"…nah. We cain't." He said. I stood in front of him. "I'm dirty. I ain't showered in—" I stopped him by taking my shirt off and placing his hands on my bare breasts. "O-kay." He said. He immediately lifted me, making me giggle, and took me into his tent. I was excited. We never had sex by the water before.

* * *

We laid next to each other. I played with the little hairs on his chest. I really have missed him a lot. "What have you been doing this whole time?"

"Ya know…huntin', scavengin'…"

"Camping?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Yeah."

"I bet you didn't miss me at all." I sat up.

"I missed ya more than I missed yer pancakes. And that's sayin' somethin'."

I smiled and looked back at him. "Well, if you come home, you can have as many of my pancakes as you want." I turned a little more so I could face him. "Why don't you come back with me? You can have a shower and a nice hot meal." I laid on top of him.

"Alright." He finally said.

"Yeah?" I pushed his hair back.

"Yeah."

I smiled and continued to play with his hair. He grabbed my hand and kissed it. I giggled.

"We can leave today." Daryl said. "I wanna fuck you again first." He grabbed me and quickly switched our positions. I laughed.

* * *

I made Daryl take a shower as soon as we got home. I got in with him, of course. I squirted some shampoo into the palm of my hand then started scrubbing his head. He squinted his eyes making me laugh. He can be a little boy sometimes. He stood under the water and washed the soap out of his hair. I watched the dirt come off him and go down the drain. "You're a dirty boy." I said.

"Oh yeah? I'll show you dirty." He grabbed me. I laughed. He planted kisses down my neck making me moan. His hands were grabbing my bottom. I was already so wet. I missed his touch so much.

"Oh, please fuck me." I moaned. "Please fuck me now."

"Yes ma'am." He lifted me up against the wall and slammed into me. I cried out.

I moaned. "Yeah." I held onto him. "Fuck me harder." He started moving faster and harder. My face was close to his, I took in his scent. The one I missed.

"Come on, baby." He said. I let go and climaxed around him. I breathed heavily as he finished. He let me slowly slide down the wall.

"You're so good." I said. I kissed him all over.

"You probably say that to everyone." He smirked repeating his words from so long ago.

"You are my everyone." I said softly. He kissed my mouth.

* * *

I started making dinner after that. I walked over to where he was sitting at the table and kissed the top of his head. He pulled me down onto his lap and we started kissing again. We pulled apart and just looked at each other. I'm so glad my gorgeous man is home.

"The twins are going to be so happy to see you." I said to him. He kind of looked away like he didn't know what to say. I pushed his hair back. "Your hair seems shorter."

"Yeah, Carol cut it for me."

I gave him a weird look. "Oh, you…saw Carol?"

"Yeah, she came by the other day."

"Oh, that's nice." I tried to play along. "What…did she want?"

"She tried to get me to go home. Here."

"Oh." Now I smiled. _Thank you, Carol. _I heard the water boiling so I got up and put the noodles in. I glanced at the dog, I bet he's hungry, too. "Aw." I said. I dug around in the fridge for some leftover food. I found some and put it onto a plate for him. "Here you go, baby boy." I patted him. He gobbled it down. "That poor boy's so hungry."

"He eats better than I do." Daryl said.

"That's your fault." I glanced at him. "You both could be eating great but you choose to be outside. Your loss." I looked at him and smiled. He gave me a look then shook his head.

I poured the sauce into a pan and started to cook that. There's something I really need to tell Daryl. I glanced at him quickly. Then, I gave the sauce another stir then put the spoon down. I walked over to him and kissed his head. "I know sometimes you feel like you just have to be out there, but you don't always need to. We want you here." I spoke truthfully.

"I know."

I shook my head. "I don't think you do. I want here you so bad. I missed you more than you could ever know." I started to tear up.

"It-it's okay." He said. "I won't leave again."

I sniffled. "You promise?"

He nodded. "I promise."

I gave him a small smile then he kissed me.

Just then, we heard a noise outside. "Uh oh." I smiled. "Guess who's home?" I got up and made my way to the door. I opened it for them.

"Guess what, mommy?" LB jumped up and down.

"What?" I said amused.

"Today we learned about snakes and we got to hold one!"

"What? You did?"

"Yeah! It was so cool, mama!" Dallas said. I smiled and stepped aside. I watched them look at Daryl. LB's face lit up immediately.

"Daddy!" She screamed. She ran over to him, he made a noise like he was complaining, but I knew he was only kidding. He picked her up and kissed her cheek. She wrapped her arms around his neck so tightly. I smiled at them two.

I looked down and realized Dallas was still standing next to me. "What's wrong, baby?" I asked him.

"Is-is it really him?" He looked nervous.

I smiled. "Of course it is."

Daryl looked over and gestured for Dallas to come over to him. He finally ran over to him and they both sat on his lap. It was so cute.

* * *

"We should all watch a movie after dinner!" LB said excitedly. "Can we mommy?"

"Did you finish your homework?" I asked without looking up from my spaghetti.

"No." She answered sadly.

"Well, then no." I finally looked at her.

"Oh." She pouted. Daryl and I shared a look.

"So, I hear someone gets straight A's." Daryl said to LB.

"Uh-huh!" She said excitedly again. "I'm the smartest kid in class!"

"Wow." Daryl said. I laughed.

"Ow!" LB yelled. "Mommy, Dallas kicked me."

"Dallas." I scolded him. "You do not kick your sister."

"Can you take me hunting with you, dad?" Dallas asked Daryl. I gave Daryl a look. He knows I don't want Dallas out there yet. Judith didn't start going outside the walls until she was ten, I would like to keep it that way for my kids, too. Daryl and I are on the same page with that.

He shook his head. "Sorry, it's too dangerous, buddy."

Dallas looked down sadly. I gave Daryl a small smile.

"Mommy?" LB said.

"Yes, baby?"

"Can daddy read to us tonight?" She asked in the most innocent voice ever. I smiled at Daryl then looked at her.

"Well, that's up to daddy." I then looked at Daryl and raised my eyebrows. I knew there was no way he could say no to her.

"Of course, sweetheart." He tapped her nose. She grinned from ear to ear. I went back to my dinner. "Ow!" LB yelled. "Mommy, he did it again." She cried.

"Dallas." I scolded. I gave him a stern look. "What did I tell you? Now you have to go to the corner." I got up and grabbed his arm. "Come on." I walked him over to the corner and he sat down with his arms crossed.

I sat back down at the table, I could hear him pouting and it made me smile. Daryl and I shared another look.

When five minutes went passed, I called Dallas over to me. "You know why I gave you a timeout?"

"Cause I kicked LB." He said.

"Yeah, and you don't hit each other. You know that. Now tell your sister you're sorry."

He turned to her. "Sorry, Lori-Beth."

"That's okay." She smiled.

I let out a small laugh. "Alright, both of you go finish your homework. And then it's bedtime." They both went into the living room and got out their supplies. I shook my head and laughed at them.

"Damn, yer strict." Daryl said to me. "Homework, timeout, bedtime. You're startin' to sound like my mom."

I laughed. "Shut up."

* * *

I was sitting on the couch waiting for Daryl to come back down. He put the kids to bed tonight. I looked up from my book when I finally heard him coming down the stairs. "Well, they're both asleep." He said.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I had to tell 'em two stories, though. The first one was too "girly" for Dallas."

I laughed. "Did you say, 'that's ma boy'?" I laughed again.

"Yeah." He raised his eyebrows. He sat down next to me, then laid down with his head in my lap. He never does that. I started playing with his hair. "Did you see LB feedin' the dog under the table?"

"Yes." I smiled. "She probably thinks we didn't." We both laughed.

There was a brief pause.

"It's good to be home."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. The best thing about it is right here."

I smiled. "I'm glad you're home, too." I kissed his forehead. "You're gonna sleep so good tonight."

"Why is that?"

"Cuz I'm gonna fuck you til you die." I joked.

"Let's go right now." Daryl jumped up.

"Okay." I giggled. He swatted my behind when I walked passed him. I smiled. Then, he came up behind me and picked me up making me squeal. He slapped my bottom again.

"Shh. You'll wake up the kids."

I laughed. I was already super horny.

* * *

"Hey." I said. "I know it's been a while since we talked. I-I didn't forget about you, I swear. I've just been busy, you know, with the kids and runs and all that. You understand." I cleared my throat. "Anyway, I just really wanted to come see you. Things are good. Really good." I nodded. "Judith is happy and strong. We made her that way. RJ will be, too, once he gets older. Michonne is okay…er, she will be okay. She's getting there." I paused for a minute and smiled. "Dallas is…the sweetest little boy. He's so brave and always trying to help everyone. He reminds me of you. And-and Lori-Beth, she's so smart. So so intelligent and so sweet as well. And she's really funny. You'd be so proud of them." I looked down. "And then there's me." I had to stop and take a deep breath before continuing. "I'm…happy. Like really happy. Daryl's real good to me." I nodded. "I thought you'd like to know that." I let out a small laugh then sniffled. "But…" I started to tear up. "I miss you." I cried. "I really really miss you. So much. I miss you so much, daddy." I sobbed. "I wish y-you were still h-here and I r-really hope I get to s-see you again one day. Oh God." I cried really hard. I sat down the flowers I picked for him on the river shore. I had to calm myself down. It was really hard, though. I took a deep breath after sometime. "Okay." I said and nodded. "I'm okay. I'll come back and talk again soon." I smiled. "I love you, daddy." I blew a kiss before walking away.

* * *

I arrived back home after that. I had Daryl stay with the kids that morning until I got back. "Hi, mommy!" LB ran passed me playing with the dog.

"Hi, mom!" Dallas said and ran by too.

I smiled at them playing.

"Hey, baby." Daryl came over to me and kissed me. "Everythang okay?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "Everything is." I smiled at him and he smiled back.

"Mommy! Daddy!" LB yelled. "Come play with us."

Daryl and I laughed. "Okay." Daryl went over to them. I stayed there for a minute and just looked at all of them. Things were perfect. I have been through so much, we all have…but in this moment, I couldn't be happier. I wiped a tear away.

"Come on, mommy!"

"I'm coming." I laughed. Daryl and I played with our kids and our dog. We had a beautiful little family. Daryl and I kissed each other.

"I love you, shorty." He said to me.

I smiled at him and said. "I love you too, tough guy." _My tough guy. There's something extra special about my tough guy._

**The End**

* * *

**Hey ****everyone! I just want to give a last thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited and especially reviewed this story and the one before! Your support means everything to me! Unfortunately, that is the end for this story. I hope you all enjoyed both stories! Oh and don't forget to check out my other Abby story called Diamond Heart! :D There's a lot more of Abby and Daryl in that ;) It would be much appreciated :) Well, hope you liked the end and please please please anyone who is reading leave me a review and let me know your thoughts. It can be anything. Just please leave a review one last time for this story. Thank you and love you all! :) That's all for now!**


End file.
